Voice
by frostmoon13
Summary: Five-year-old Koe and her brother Keith, seeking a life of adventure, away from their mother, are separated and transported to the world of One Piece when they eat a couple of strange fruits. Ten years pass, and all Koe wants is to find her brother... But the grand line is a big place, and they're more than just an ocean apart...
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! I've read quite a few fics where "normal" people are sucked into the world of one piece. This is my take on it. This is my first fanfic I've ever posted! I will accept constructive criticism, because I want to make this story as good as possible!**

Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece. If I did I would have been working on it before I was born.

Chapter 1

"Wake up! Wake up!" That was what I normally woke up to. My mother shouting at me. I pulled myself out of bed, and looked at the calendar. Monday the first. First day of school. I was so excited. Normally, you wouldn't expect a five year old to be excited about their first day of school, but for me it meant I wouldn't be stuck at home with my witch of a mom.

I pulled off my pink pajamas, and started rummaging through my closet for something to wear. It was a tough decision, but I finally decided on my blue shirt with a gear design, black shorts, and lace-up sandals. Then I grabbed my blue plastic hairbrush and attacked my mop of reddish brown hair.

All done! I raced down the stairs for breakfast.

I wasn't expecting anything less, but I still didn't duck in time when I entered the kitchen. A high heeled shoe glanced across my forehead. "Oww!" I whined.

"You should have been up fifteen minutes ago!" came a shrill voice. Enter my mom. The most awful woman to hit parenthood. She wore a black dress, and black high heels. Her brown hair was tied back into a ponytail behind. Her blue eyes were like a hawk's. Sharp and vicious. She might have been pretty, if it weren't for the awful smell of beer and her short fuse. Worst mother ever.

"Sorry, mom..." I said, making a move to sit down. She smacked me upside the head and I flew across the kitchen to the door. "You need to get a move on!" she hollered. "Why can't you be a little more like your brother? He always gets up on time. He's horrible otherwise, but at least he's never late!"

As if on cue, my brother Keith ran in from the family room. He had hair like mine, as well as my reddish brown eyes - okay, I know you don't see that often, but seriously! That's what colour my eyes are! - and Mom's proud expression. He was seven, two years older than me, and he was the best friend I had in the whole world. He took my hand and said, "We're going now, Mommy! C'mon, Koe!" We both dodged another pair of shoes and shut the door behind us.

"Waah!" I cried, wiping my eyes. "It hurts!"

"Koe, you need to be more careful!" Keith said, dabbing my forehead. The shoe Mom had thrown at me had made a decent sized cut. "Just wait for another few hours." he said, digging through his backpack. He fished out a pack of band-aids and stuck one on my cut.

"How long is a few hours?" I asked him, giving him the sad eyes.

"Too long." he said. "We can run away as soon as school ends. We can't run until then, because Mom would get a call from the school if we missed class."

I grinned. My brother was so smart. He had come up with the idea that they could run away on my first day of school. We couldn't stand our mom's constant abuse. "C'mon." he said. "We'll be late for school."

We passed a market on our way. There were vendors selling meat, fruit, fresh pastries, you name it. I tugged at Keith's sleeve. "Keith, I'm hungry..." I said. "I didn't eat any breakfast."

"Oh, you poor dears." someone said. Standing behind a fruit stand was an impossibly old lady. She wore her grey hair in a tight bun at the back of her head, a purple mumu, and grey socks. Her eyes were grey as the ocean. "Why would you not eat breakfast, dearie? Why not ask your mother?"

"Our mom's mean." I said. "We're running away."

Keith pinched me. "Don't tell grown-ups about that." he scolded.

"Oh, dear." the old lady said. "How is your mother mean?"

"She gave me this." I said, pointing to the scratch on my forehead.

The old lady's eyebrows furrowed so much she almost had a unibrow. "Oh, that's just horrible." she said. "What are you planning to do?"

My face lit up. "We'll run away and become pirates!" I shouted.

Keith gave me an odd look. "Why pirates?" he asked.

"Pirates live a life of ADVENTURE!" I must have looked pretty dumb, but I wanted to live a life of adventure.

The old lady smiled. "Such a fine ambition. Here." She held up a pair of fruits. One was a purple pear, the other was a blue watermelon. Neither were smaller than a basketball, and both of them had pale grey swirls. "I can't let two fine pirates like yourselves go on an adventure on an empty stomach."

Keith looked at the fruits suspiciously, but I eagerly took the fruits from the old lady. "Thanks weird old lady!" Keith smacked me lightly on the head. "Koe, that's rude!" he said.

The old lady didn't seem to mind, though. "Thank-you ma'am." he said.

As we walked down the street, the old lady called, "Enjoy your adventures, young ones!"

I looked at the two fruits. "Since she gave them to us for free, we should eat them." Keith said.

I perked up. "Give me the blue one!" I said. I liked it because it was the same colour as the gear on my shirt. A kind of metallic blue.

Keith took the purple one and took a bite. After he swallowed it, he muttered something about it tasting horrible. I ignored him and took a bite of my watermelon. It did taste pretty bad. I continued down the road. "Hey, Keith," I said, turning around. "Which way to the school? - Keith?"

My brother wasn't behind me. He had just vanished into thin air. I ran back in the direction I came. "Keith!" I shouted.

That's when it hit me. A mind-crushing wave of, what would you call it, vertigo hit me. I staggered along. I didn't even realise I was tumbling out into the middle of the road. The last thing I remembered was a honk, a red semi, a crash, and everything going black.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey again! I felt like posting a second chapter within a day, so here it is! **

**Koe, could you do the disclaimer for me?**

**Koe: No. Do it yourself. **

**FM13: Do you want me to write a chapter about you falling through the sky? I can make your descent very, ****_very_**** long.**

**Koe: (Sweatdrops) Fine. Frostmoon13 doesn't own one piece or any of the characters. She only owns her ocs. **

Chapter 2

When I woke up, I was in the ocean. At least I thought it was the ocean. I was still completely dazed from getting hit by that semi. How could I have been hit that far? I lived in a landlocked city.

There was a red blur right next to me. I had a hard time focusing at first, but soon I realised it was someone's hair. I _was_ in the ocean, being held by some guy I didn't know. When the man noticed I was awake, he smiled and said something I didn't understand. I figured it was just because of my splitting headache. Before I knew it, I was out again, my head resting on the man's chest.

The second time I came to, I was still with that red-haired guy. Now, when I say red hair, I don't mean reddish brown like mine or Keith's. I mean really red, like a fire truck. This time I was on his back, with something scratching my face. A straw hat. He was walking somewhere, beside him was a tall guy with black hair tied in a ponytail.

I'd never seen a guy with a ponytail before. He looked at me, then said something to the redhead. I still couldn't tell what they were saying. The redhead shifted his weight so he could look me in the face. This was the first time I saw him clearly. He had three scars running down his left eye. He grinned, then said more gibberish.

I rubbed my eyes. Where was I? And more importantly, where was Keith? "Hey, where am I? Have you seen Keith?" I asked.

Both of them looked at me like I had lobsters crawling out my ears. The redhead just smiled at me, and set me down on a stool. I looked up and saw a black flag with a skull and crossbones. The skull had three parallel marks over the left eye.

A pirate ship! I was on a PIRATE SHIP! My life was complete. I loved everything about pirate stories. The dangerous seas, the fights with the navy, etc.

The ship was docked at a small port. There were a few tiny buildings. It looked like a quiet, yet busy town, the kind of place I liked best.

The redhead stood up, and held out a large hand. I took it, and he led me into the small town.

We passed small shops and smaller houses. Only one shop had a sign I could understand. It said **Party's Bar**.

There was a little boy standing in front of the bar. He was about seven, with scruffy black hair and a goofy expression. His shirt said 'anchor'. His face lit up when he saw us. He shouted something, then stopped abruptly when he saw me.

The redhead leant down and said something to the boy. The boy turned to me and said, "Ore wa Luffy!" I stared at him, unable to respond or even understand. He looked at me, as if he expected me to start gabbling in his language.

The redhead got down to our level, and whispered something in the boy's ear. Then he turned to me. He put his hand on his heart and said, "Shanks."

The boy did the same thing, but he said, "Luffy." Then, the boy put his hand over my heart, and looked at me expectantly. Were they introducing themselves? I pointed to the redhead and said, "Shanks..."

He nodded. "Luffy..." I said, pointing to the boy. He grinned hugely.

I clapped my hand over Luffy's, which was still over my heart, and I said, "Koe."

Shanks and Luffy both looked at each other for a second. "Koe?" they both asked. I nodded.

I couldn't believe it. I had been hit by a semi and flew all the way to a foreign country or something. I still couldn't see my brother, and I was getting panicky. Luffy grinned at me and said something else to me, and Shanks scolded him for something. That's when I snapped. I started to cry. "Where am I!?" I wailed. "Where's Keith?! I'm scared! I want my brother!"

Shanks pulled me into a hug. He murmured something, while running his hand through my hair. I couldn't understand what he was saying of course, but his voice was soothing. The only part of it I understood was "Shh..."

It took me a little while to calm down. When I finally did, Shanks let me go.

Luffy stepped up, and used his finger to wipe a tear from my eye. I gave him a small smile. Luffy grinned again, grabbed my hand, and started pulling me towards the bar. He looked over his shoulder and yelled at Shanks, who grinned and followed us.

Inside was crammed with people. When we walked in, they all stared at us, then yelled, "OKASHIRA!"

Okashira? What was that supposed to mean? I guessed Shanks was their captain.

Luffy dragged me over to the high counter and helped me onto one of the high stools. There was a dark haired lady standing behind the counter. She said something to Luffy.

Then, Luffy put his hand over his heart and said his name. I followed suit and said, "Koe!"

The lady paused for a moment, then said, "Makino." I grinned and shook her hand.

Makino handed me and Luffy a drink that looked like orange juice. I wasn't sure if I should drink it, but Luffy took a huge gulp of the stuff. I followed suit. It was orange juice!

Luffy started talking animatedly to Shanks, while the ponytail guy and a couple of others crowded around me. I introduced myself, and showed them how to introduce themselves so I could understand. Ponytail guy introduced himself as Beckman. A really round guy with goggles called himself Roo. The guy with puffy lips and curly hair said his name was Yasopp.

While Luffy was yelling at Shanks for something, and everyone laughed at him, except me of course, the swinging door flew off it's hinges.

In walked a large group of scary people. didn't like the look of them.

The man who I thought was the ringleader stepped up, and smacked his hand against the counter. I flinched.

He spoke to Makino in a raspy voice. Makino said something that obviously irritated him.

Shanks chuckled good-naturedly and held up an unopened bottle to the weird guy.

That didn't seem to please the weird guy though. He smashed the bottle over Shanks' head.

"Shanks!" I shouted. I jumped off my stool and ran up to him.

The weird guy laughed and walked away.

For a moment, there was silence. Then, Shanks snorted.

All the others burst out laughing. Shanks took off his hat and laughed along with them.

Luffy started yelling at Shanks for just laughing it off. Shanks tried to explain it, but Luffy didn't seem to be listening. He abruptly turned around, snatched a small box, and started to eat the pale purple swirly fruit inside.

Shanks saw this and he went pale. He grabbed Luffy by the ankles and started to shake him up and down. Luffy looked like he was going to throw up. Instead of throwing up, his legs stretched and his face hit the floor. Then, his legs and torso went back to normal, followed by his head a few seconds later. There was quite a bit of shouting after that. None of which I understood. All I caught was Shanks saying something that I was pretty sure meant, 'You DUMBASS!', though I wasn't sure.

I had stayed in the little village in a few days, and I had already started to enjoy myself.

I had found new friends in Luffy and Shanks, and I started to learn how to communicate without words. I spent most of my time in the tavern with Luffy and Makino. Today was no different. Luffy was making me laugh by stretching his cheeks out three feet.

Then the doors swung open, and in walked the scary people from before. As Makino brought them drinks, the scary people started drinking and laughing. I didn't want to make eye contact with any of them, so I focused on my orange juice. Then, Luffy started freaking out. He started shouting at the top of his lungs.

The ring leader walked up to Luffy, picked him up like a rag doll, and took him away. I sat there for a moment in shock. Then, Makino and I ran out the door. She went one way, I went the other, towards the pier. _Please let them be there...Please let them be there..._

Yes! Docked at the port was Shank's ship, and Shanks was on the dock, talking to Beckman.

"SHANKS!" I shouted. I was crying. When I caught up to him, I grabbed his hand and tried to pull him along. Of course I couldn't pull him along.

Shanks put his hands on my shoulders and held me out at arms length, making me stare into his deep brown eyes. He said something in a calming tone, and handed me a piece of cloth. I took it and blew my nose. "Luffy..." I managed. "Shanks... You gotta help Luffy!" Shanks looked at me , then allowed me to pull him to the centre of town.

We got there just in time. Shanks didn't seem too worried. Even when one of the bandits - I decided they must have been bandits since I couldn't see a pirate ship other than Shank's at the port - pointed a gun at his head. Before anyone could react, Roo had shot the gunman right through the head. I gasped, covering my eyes with my hands. Blood was splattered everywhere. The bandit fell with a sickening thud.

The ring leader ordered his men to attack, and fifteen of them charged.

I froze in fear.

Beckman put his hand on my shoulder, and smiled reassuringly. He stepped up, and with one huge rifle, knocked them all out. I stared at him wide eyed.

The bandit guy looked close to panic. He took a small sphere, and threw it on the ground. Smoke exploded from the ground. When the smoke cleared, the bandit and Luffy were gone.

Shanks started freaking out. Roo started yelling at him.

Shanks ran off to find Luffy. I started to go after him, but Beckman put a hand on my shoulder and shook his head. I pretty much got the message. 'Let him handle it'.

I ended up just sitting next to Beckman and Roo, pretty much shaking with worry. Roo handed me a rack of meat, but I barely touched it. Beckman patted my shoulder awkwardly.

"WAAH!"

I stood up. I thought I heard a scream... _Luffy..._ I thought.

I was getting really upset. I blinked back tears. What if Shanks couldn't save him? What if he was really hurt, or dead?

I was really close to tears now. My shoulders shook. Every minute that passed was like an eternity of torture.

Then, Beckman tapped my shoulder. When I looked at him, he pointed down the road towards the port. Shanks was walking towards us, followed closely by... "LUFFY!" I ran up and practically glomped him. He was soaked to the skin and shivering, but he was otherwise okay. He hugged me back.

He said something I didn't understand, then sniffed.

"Shanks!" I said, looking up. At that moment, I felt that nothing could ruin this moment. Then I noticed a bloody stump where his arm used to be. I froze. "WAAH! SHANKS! YOUR ARM!" I wailed.

Shanks smiled and ruffled my hair with his remaining hand. I put my hand on Shanks'. Relief flooded through me, and I cried even louder.

Four days later, Luffy, Makino, and I were standing at the dock, watching Shanks and his crew packing up to leave. It was a beautiful day. Shanks' crew was working so fast, they reminded me of a colony of carpenter ants. Beckman passed by, carrying a large crate. He winked at me. I grinned back.

Shanks started having an animated conversation with Luffy, who didn't seem too upset about him leaving. Shanks stuck his tongue out at Luffy, then Luffy shouted at him. I can still remember what he said, "Kaizoku-o ni ore wa naru!"

Shanks smiled, then placed his straw hat on Luffy's head. He smiled, then said something so quiet I couldn't hear. Luffy clutched the hat and started to cry.

Then, Shanks turned to me. He smiled, and handed me a large leather bound book. My eyes went wide.

It was beautiful, with intricate patterns pressed into the leather. It was about as large as my torso, and very heavy.

I opened the book, but all the pages were blank. A loose piece of paper fell out from between the pages. It was a note. Shanks picked it up, and placed it between the cover and the first page, and grinned at me. Then, he ruffled my hair. I sniffed, then I jumped up and gave him a hug. I was barely tall enough to reach his waist, but I managed to catch him around the middle. Shanks grinned and ruffled my hair again.

Luffy kept crying. Shanks smiled again and put my hand in his. Then he said something to Luffy.

_He must mean 'stick together'. _I thought.

I tightened my grip on Luffy's hand, and we both watched as Shanks and his crew boarded their ship.

The whole crew was waving to the crowd on the pier. I waved my hand frantically, and shouted, "BYE, SHANKS!" at the top of my lungs.

Makino put one of her hands on my shoulder. We all watched the ship as it disappeared into the horizon.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey! I'm on a roll today, so here's chapter 3! **

**Koe: The only reason you're on a roll is because you wrote up to chapter nine. **

**FM13: Shhh! That's supposed to be a secret! Besides, I always edit and re-edit my chapters before I even think of posting them!**

**Koe: (chuckles) I just had to do that. (gets slam-tackled in a hug from behind) Ahh! LUFFY!**

**Luffy: (grins like an idiot and laughs)**

**FM13: (sweatdrops) Well, this is interesting... Anyway, enjoy a short chapter in Keith's point of view!**

Chapter 3

I pushed through the rushes along a swampy river's edge. "Where am I?" I wondered. "I wonder if Koe got thrown into this weird place, too." I tripped and fell flat on my face. "Oww..." I whined. I was getting really scared.

A few minutes later, I found that my path was blocked by a bunch of thorn bushes. There was absolutely no way I could get through without getting slashed to ribbons. After a few minutes of scouting around, I found that there was no other way, so I decided to charge it. I gritted my teeth, and ran. And just when I was almost there, or so I thought, I tripped again. "Oww..." I grumbled for the umpteenth time that day. I looked back, and I noticed that my feet weren't solid. The thorns were sticking through my ankles, which were made of a greenish flame. Fear flooded my mind, and I got up and ran.

I managed to run through the bushes, and a large gated building came into view. It was so huge, it looked like a fortress. I managed to yell, "Hello?" before collapsing.

When I came to, there was a huge man standing in front of me. He was huge, with a tatoo on his left arm, and a cool army style crew cut. He said something to me, but I couldn't understand him. Great, just my luck to land somewhere where they don't speak the same language.

The man started to look annoyed. He went to grab my shoulder, and I flinched. The man gasped. I opened my eyes and saw that my shoulder was made of that same green fire. "Ahh!" I cried. What was wrong with me? I was shaking with fear.

The big man gazed at me with a look that was almost sympathetic. He put his hand on my head. His hand was, not warm, but scalding. He smiled, said something else, then steered me towards the building. Just as the gates swung shut behind us, I caught a sign with a blue seagull design.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello again. Here's chapter 4. I put this chapter through a whole lot of editing because the first version looked like the work of a three-year-old. **

**Koe: While you're editing the next chapter, can I read chapter 3?**

**FM13: No! It'll spoil the story completely! **

**Koe: (pouts) I just want to know what happened to Keith. **

**FM13: That's exactly why! **

**Koe: You forgot to add the disclaimer last chapter...**

**FM13: (facepalms) You mean ****_you_**** forgot to do it. Speaking of which, can you say the disclaimer now?**

**Koe: Only if you let me master the language.**

**FM13: Later, okay? Please do it!**

**Koe: (laughs) Okay, fine. frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. She only owns her OCs. **

Chapter 4

It had been a good few days since Shanks and his crew left. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon, and Luffy and I were playing tag outside Party's Bar. It was completely unfair, since Luffy could stretch his arm and tag me from far away, but it was still fun. Luffy was about to tag me again, when he stopped short.

Standing there was a large old man, with white hair cropped short, tanned skin and a semicircle scar around his eye. Luffy must have known the old man, because his face paled. "J-Jii-chan?!" he said, his eyes wider than saucers.

The old man clapped him on the back so hard he fell forward on his face. Luffy said something to 'Jii-chan' and then he put his hand over his heart, our usual way to introduce ourselves.

I followed Luffy's example, and the old man looked at me, then said, "Garp."

_Garp? What kind of a name is Garp? _I shook the old man's hand.

Then, Garp grabbed Luffy by the cheek, and started dragging him away. "Luffy!" I shouted. I grabbed my book, which was propped up against a rock, and followed them. Luffy argued with Garp in a loud voice, as Garp dragged him away.

I had a hard time keeping up with the two of them, because the road they were treading was so wild and overgrown. More than once I tripped over a root and nearly flattened my nose when I fell. We had been walking for about twenty minutes when we came to a beat up old hut. Garp rapped on the door with his huge knuckles. "Dadan!" he shouted.

The door flung open, and standing in the doorway was the dumpiest old woman I'd ever seen. She was smoking one of those awful cigarettes. There was a large group of people behind her, staring fearfully at Garp.

As she and Garp had an animated conversation, something hit Luffy over his eye. Spit.

I didn't need to be able to understand Luffy to tell he was disgusted. I looked up to where the spit had come from, and sitting on a tree branch was a boy of about ten. He had unruly black hair, brown eyes, and his face was splattered with freckles. His clothes were torn and ratty. He looked like he'd been living off the land for years.

Luffy glared at the other boy. The other boy glared back. Then, I heard the dumpy lady yell, "San?!" San? I wondered what that meant. Garp started to leave, motioning for me to follow. I stood there, rooted to the spot. Luffy stood beside me and took my hand, glaring at the old man.

Garp turned and grinned at the dumpy lady, who looked like she was about to explode with anger.

The lady grabbed Luffy and me by the scruffs of our necks, and dragged us into the hut. She sat us both on the floor, and handed us both a glass of water and a bowl of rice.

Luffy started talking to the dumpy lady, who was surrounded by a bunch of people who reminded me of the bandits that Beckman had walloped. I sat beside the big kid with the freckles, who was eating a huge rack of meat. I grabbed my rice bowl, and started wolfing it down.

Luffy, who was still arguing with the dumpy lady, said the same thing he did to Shanks. I had no idea what 'Kaizoku-o' meant, but it upset the older boy, anyway.

He stood up, frowned, and stomped out the door.

Luffy stood up, ignoring his unfinished bowl of rice, and followed him out the door.

I shot up, ignoring the dumpy lady's shouting, and followed Luffy outside. I wasn't really looking forward to going back out there, the forest was full of creepy noises, but I wasn't crazy about staying in that smelly hut, either.

I caught up to Luffy, who was looking up at the older boy, waving his arms and shouting something.

The older boy glared at us from his perch on a log. He jumped off the log, kicked off, and darted off into the woods.

Luffy and I started after him, but stopped when the log, which was on the top of a hill, creaked, and rolled towards us. We had to scatter, before we got crushed by a twenty-foot log.

As soon as the log passed us by, Luffy and I stood there in shock, panting. My heartbeat throbbed in my ears. "That big guy's trying to kill us!" I said through gasping breaths.

Luffy looked down at me, confused as to what I'd just said.

I rolled my eyes, then did the best imitation of the big guy I could. Then I mimed what I hoped looked like great effort. At last, I drew my finger across my neck and made a 'gckkhhk' sound.

Luffy stared at me, a look of amazement in his eyes. We stared into each other's eyes for a moment, then we burst out laughing.

For the next few days, Luffy and I spent our time following the older boy. Normally, we failed miserably. We ended up attacked by crocodiles, vultures, and, oh my god, tigers. At one point we got lost for three days, and got in huge trouble when we got back, battered and bloody. I had found that I was no good at swimming, and Luffy was no different. Except he had a cool ability. I didn't, as far as I knew.

On the second week, Luffy and I actually managed to follow Freckles all the way to where he was going. When we got there, I covered my nose. The place smelled absolutely awful. In a tree, Freckles was perched on one of the higher branches, along with a boy about his age.

This boy was a little shorter than Freckles, with blond hair, ratty clothes, and a huge black hat with hexagonal goggles.

Luffy shouted at the two boys. He was so excited, I could have sworn his eyes started to flash. The other two didn't look like they were too happy to see us. They started to get into a shouting match which I couldn't understand, so I decided to look around. There were piles and piles of trash. I wrinkled my nose.

I turned around when I heard a shout from Luffy.

The two older boys had tied him to the tree. They were glaring at Luffy with malicious looks on their faces.

Freckles frowned and said, "Wareware wa kare o korosu tame ni hitsuyō ga arimasu."

I cocked my head to one side, unable to understand.

Luffy, however, screamed. "Tasukete!"

I ran forward. No one was going to hurt my friend! I charged Goggles and kicked him in the shin.

Goggles fell to the ground, clutching at his shin. He yelled something I figured was a swear word, and Freckles grabbed my arm. He threw me aside like a weighed absolutely nothing.

"Luffy!" I shouted, rubbing my shoulder.

Then, I heard a snap behind me. There were people carrying swords coming. A hand grabbed me, covered my mouth, and pulled me behind a bush. Freckles and Goggles had pulled me behind the brush. The largest of the men had Luffy by the neck.

I wanted to charge the ugly guy and beat him up, but this guy was huge.

After a fairly brief and animated shouting match, the man took Luffy away. I struggled against Freckles' and Goggles' hands. No way would I let that ugly ape hurt my friend! Freckles had to hold me back for almost half an hour, while Goggles went off somewhere. When he came back, I was crying, still trying to get away from Freckles. Goggles shouted something to him, and Freckles let me go. I started to run in the direction the ape had taken Luffy, when Goggles grabbed my hand. "Matte!" he said.

He led me in the other direction. As he and Freckles passed their tree, they both grabbed pieces of metal pipes, and I even got one. We went to a deeper part of the junkyard, which, if possible, smelled even worse.

I heard a loud scream, and the three of us ran into the wrecked area. I bit back a scream when I saw Luffy. He was so weak, he looked like he was just a few inches from death. Freckles and Goggles were absolute naturals with their pipes. I managed to find an old knife on the ground, and cut Luffy loose. I tried to drag him along, but he was way bigger than me, and he couldn't support some of his own weight. Goggles helped me carry him away, and Freckles got into a fight, metal pipe against sword, with the big ape. By the time we'd gotten out, Freckles had gotten a huge cut across his forehead.

When we made it back to the tree and patched Luffy up, he started bawling.

Freckles shouted at Luffy, and he shouted back, and I couldn't really follow. Then, the conversation quieted down, and they all stared at me.

Luffy began our little introduction procedure. I followed his example and introduced myself. The two older boys looked at eachother, then they did the same thing. Freckles introduced himself as "Ace", and Goggles said his name was "Sabo". Then we all went back to the hut where we lived with the bandit-like people.

After that, Luffy, Ace, Sabo, and I spent a lot more time together. At one point, Ace stole a bottle of something alcoholic from the dumpy lady, and a few cups. Ace poured some of the clear liquid into the cups, and they took up a cup each. Luffy handed me one. The three of them linked their arms together and pointed the cups towards their mouths. Luffy motioned for me to do the same.

So I followed suit. We all took a drink, which was very difficult with one arm linked with three other arms, and the liquid tasted awful, but it seemed like a real cause to celebrate, because they all yelled happily. I smiled, and said, "Cheers!"

The three of them looked at me, and grinned.

**There you have it! Chapter 4!**

**Koe: That was a long one, you know... **

**FM13: Yep! And now you have a new family!**

**Koe: I will never forget my blood brother!**

**FM13: That's kind of the point of the story, you know...**

**Koe: At least give me a cool ability, though!**

**FM13: You have to wait!**

**Koe: Anyway, please review! XD**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello again! Four chapters in one day! Yay!**

**Koe: Do I get my ability in this chapter? You refused to tell me anything!**

**FM13: If you learn anything about your future, the story will be ruined! You don't want that, do you?**

**Koe: (turns pale) Uhh... Nope. Anywho... frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece, or it's characters. She only owns her OCs. **** (Turns away...)**

**FM13: Did I say something...? Anyway, enjoy! ****Thanks to Wooden Roses for favoriting, and Molly Grace 16 for reviewing! You rock!**

Chapter 5

For the next few days, we spent every moment, both waking and sleeping, together. We fought and hunted huge animals in the woods, went swinging on vines, and fighting off those pirates. Ace and Sabo taught me how to call them, "Aniki". I didn't know what they meant by it, but it made Ace and Sabo happy whenever I called them that.

One day the four of us were pulling a dine-and-dash in town when we passed a man with a huge top hat that looked a bit like Sabo's. When he saw Sabo pass, he called his name.

I looked back, trying to figure out what the old guy had said. Immediately, I tripped on a loose cobblestone and fell flat on my nose.

I started to cry. Sabo stopped, and hauled me off the ground. He stared at me, at my nose, which had started bleeding like fireworks, and ruffled my hair. Then, he took my hand and dashed off. I was almost horizontal, flapping behind him like a windsock.

When we got back to our tree, Luffy and Ace started harping Sabo about something. Sabo seemed to be explaining something. Luffy and Ace looked at him, put their fingers up their noses, and said, "Dakaranani?" Sabo grew shark teeth and yelled at them.

Then Luffy said something, then he looked at me, then looked at me, as if he expected me to answer. There was a long pause. I didn't know what to do or say, so I nodded. Ace and Sabo both sweatdropped.

For the next little while, Sabo seemed on edge.

The real trouble, however, began the next day. The big ugly pirate that we'd fought for a long time had Luffy, Ace, and I by the scruffs of our necks. The man we'd passed in the street the other day had a hold of Sabo's shoulder. Luffy and Ace were both shouting at the men. Sabo was struggling as well, but immediately stopped when Ugly #1 put his sword blade against our throats. He said something to Ugly #2, and turned away.

"Sabo!" I shouted, struggling against Ugly #1.

Sabo looked back for a moment, with a really sad look on his face. Then he turned away.

Ugly #1 took the rest of us away, to a large pirate ship. There were huge boxes stacked everywhere. _I wonder what they're doing with them..._

My question was soon answered. We spent the next few hours unloading the boxes and taking them to the junkyard. It was the middle of the night by the time he got us to stop. At that point, I was getting afraid. I sniffed the air. Smoke. There was a faint trace of smoke on the wind. "Luffy! Ace!" I shouted, pointing to the sky. There was a plume of black smoke coming from not too far away.

Ace grabbed my hand and shouted something at the top of his lungs. The three of us darted towards our tree, but the ugly pirate guy stopped us. He held up his sword, and I cringed. Then, someone whacked him on the head so hard he fell forward on his face. "Dumpy Lady!" I shouted.

The dumpy lady yelled at us, and Luffy grabbed my hand, and dragged me off. We had only gone a few steps when Ace stopped and turned around. I dug my heels into the ground. "Ace!" I called.

Ace looked back and grinned. Ace was one of the strongest kids I knew, but I was still afraid for him. Ace and the dumpy lady both stayed behind. Luffy and I were left to get out of there on our own.

We had only gotten a few hundred feet away, when we found our path blocked by a huge wall of fire. Luffy screamed in terror. He started running around in circles, patting his rear, which had caught fire. Strangely enough, I was completely calm. There was something across the wall of fire.

"There's water over there..." I said.

Luffy stopped. "Nani?" he said. "Water." I repeated. I figured Luffy was looking at me, trying to figure out what the hell kind of nonsense 'wada' was.

I stood there. The heat was furnace quality, but I stayed there. I raised my right hand. The flames licked at my hand, but I didn't feel it. I felt an odd tugging sensation in my gut, and all of a sudden, a huge volume of water doused the fire in our path.

"Koe..." Luffy stared at me wide-eyed. I smiled, and used a small amount of water to douse the fire on his butt. It felt good to be able to surprise him for a change. So I had a weird power too. It was totally awesome. I was like those waterbender people from that TV show Keith used to watch.

I grabbed Luffy's hand, and we both practically flew down the path toward the old battered hut.

A few days passed, and Ace and the dumpy lady still hadn't come back. Both Luffy and I were getting panicky. One of the bandit guys, Dogura, tried to calm us down, but it really didn't get him anywhere.

I looked out the window, absently playing with a small sphere of water. I had been sitting there for over an hour, watching for Ace. My focus shattered and I stood up like a shot. "Ace!" I shouted happily.

Sure enough, Ace and the dumpy lady were back. Both of them were covered in burns, cuts and blood. Luffy and I both looked at eachother, then we ran towards Ace, practically glomping him. Ace shouted at us as he fell backwards, trying to shake us off. After a while, he gave up, and put a hand on each of our heads. "Yay!" I shouted. "You're alright, Aniki!"

The mood was a little subdued that evening. We were all pretty worried about Sabo.

We decided to go fight creatures in the woods to get our minds off Sabo, but our hearts weren't in it. Only once did they forget about that for a while, but that was because a crocodile nearly swallowed me whole. If you've never been inside a crocodile's mouth, I don't recommend it...

We couldn't get to sleep that night, either. We just lay on the ground, gazing at the stars. I tried to find some of the constellations Keith had told me about one summer, but the sky was completely different. I couldn't even see the big dipper in the north, or the southern cross in the south. That didn't make me feel any better, in fact, it made me miss Keith even more. Every time a cloud passed over the moon, it looked like my brother's face. The stars were fading into the grey eastern sky before I fell asleep.

**FM13: So, that's chapter 5! Hope you liked it!**

**Koe: Water? You gave me power over water?**

**FM13: (Gives her the puppy dog eyes) Is it not good enough... Because I was thinking of giving you a zone-type devil fruit... The hippo-hippo fruit I think it was.**

**Koe: (gasps) The hippo-hippo fruit?! I'd like to see you try that! **

**FM13: Why do you think I didn't use it? **

**Koe: Please review! XD**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hiii! Here's chapter 6!**

**This chapter is in Keith's point of view again! So, I'm going to say the disclaimer this time!**

**I don't own One Piece. Only my OCs and this fic. **

Chapter 6

"_Hey, Keith!" My friend Andy called, running across the school playing field. He tackled me in a headlock. "Want to play football?" _

_I laughed. _

_Marcus, my best friend, ran over to us. "Sorry I'm late!" he said. "Got held up by my teacher!" _

_I clapped him over the shoulder. "That's fine, man." I said. "Kindergarten is tough, isn't it?" _

_My friends nodded. Then, their expressions changed to confusion, then pleasure._

_I stared at them, wondering what they were looking at, then something tackled me from behind. "Aack!" I shouted in surprise. I looked over my shoulder. I blanched. There was my little sister, sitting on my back, grinning. _

"_Keith!" she shouted. She clung to my middle and refused to let go. _

_Marcus and Andy laughed. "Keith, who's the little kid?" Andy asked, fighting to hold back laughter. "A little admirer, maybe?" _

_My face got red. "N-no way!" I stammered. "This is my sister!"_

_They stopped. "Your sister? The one you keep telling us about?" Marcus said. _

_None of my friends had ever met anyone from my family, since Mom was always home. I didn't want them to think I was related to that woman. _

"_What's your name?" Marcus asked my sister. _

"_Koe!" she said. _

_Andy laughed. "What does that mean? It doesn't sound like an english name."_

"_It's not." I said. "I looked it up. It means 'voice' in japanese. "_

_Marcus' eyes grew wide. "Wow... Way cooler than yours, Keith!" _

"_Hey!" I said, turning red. "My name is an old scottish name that was used by nobles! It comes from an element!" _

"_Which one?" Koe, who I had forgot was listening, asked. _

_I could feel my ears turning pink. "Wood." _

_Everyone laughed._

"_Oh, well." Andy said. "I don't care. You have a cool name." Marcus nodded. "Totally!" he said. Koe nodded. "Keith is cool!" _

_We all looked at Koe, and laughed. _

I woke up with a start, drenched in sweat. For a moment I didn't know where I was. Then I remembered. I was at the marine headquarters at Mariejoa. I sighed. "Koe..." I muttered. What had happened to my sister? I stretched. "Well," I said. "If I want to find her, I couldn't be in a better place."

Then, my door opened. The tall man from two days ago was standing in the doorway. "Ohayōgozaimasu." he said. _Good morning._ I had been learning a few simple sentences for the past few days, and that one was the easiest one I could think of. "Ohayōgozaimasu! Sa... Saki..." I could never remember the guy's name... It was annoying.

The tall man smiled. "Akainu." he said.

Red dog? That was an interesting name.

Akainu held out his hand, I took it, and he led me down the hallway.

I sighed.

Akainu looked at me. "Nanika ga anata o shinpai shite imasu ka?" he asked.

I thought for a second. Shinpai meant worry... I was worried about Koe... About my sister. I took a deep breath. "Boku no imouto..." I said.

Akainu nodded. He patted my shoulder.

We left the building, going out to a large courtyard with a large scaffold. There was someone there, chained and guarded. His head was bowed, but I could still see a large tattoo of a jolly roger on his chest.

"Doko..." I muttered. Then, I caught myself. I had just said 'where', instead of 'who'. "Kare wa dare desu ka?" I asked. 'who is he?'

Akainu didn't say anything, for a moment. Then, he growled, "Kaizoku desu."

Kaizoku...? Pirate? The guy was a convicted criminal?

Then I realised what was going on. This was a public execution! I didn't want to watch this. I barely had time to turn away before someone shouted a command, and bullets tore through the man's chest. I flinched at the blood curdling scream that followed.

Akainu put his hand on my shoulder, and muttered something I couldn't understand.

I looked up. There was a small blue flame hovering over the pirate's head.

Curious, I put my hand out. My hand turned into green flames, detached from my arm - man, it took me way too long to get used to seeing that - and caught the blue flame. I brought it towards me. I stared at it for a moment. I had never seen a blue flame before. I

They were called soul flames. The form people's spirits took in the physical world. That was my 'akuma no mi' ability. I could become a soul flame, and see the flames of others.

I looked at Akainu. His flame was burning, green and bright over his heart. I looked around. There was nothing but a sea of green flames. I looked at the blue flame in my hands... "This is his..." I muttered.

Dead. Blue soul flames were the souls of the dead. I gulped.

Akainu said, "Sore wa saikō no tameda..." With a shudder, I realised I understood him. I translated. "It's for the best..."

**So, there you have it! **

**Keith: You gave me pronounciation issues... (frowns) **

**FM13: When did you get here?**

**Keith: I've been here the whole time... This chapter was in my point of view, after all. **

**FM13: (laughs) Of course... So, since you're here, you can give the final word!**

**Keith: Wait a minute... I never agreed to that!**

**FM13: Too bad! (smiles evilly) Or did you forget that I'm the author of this story? I can make you do embarrassing things. **

**Keith: That's blackmail... **

**FM13: (glares)**

**Keith: Okay, okay... Please review! It's greatly appreciated!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Alright! Here's chapter 7! I just can't stop writing!**

**Koe: (rushes in, panting) I heard Keith was in the last chapter! Where is he?**

**FM13: (shrugs) I dunno. What are you talking about? **

**Koe: Don't play dumb with me! (gets poked in the shoulder, turns around) Hey! Who did that?**

**Luffy: Shishishi! (grins like an idiot and pulls Koe away) **

**Koe: Hey, Luffy! (shouts) Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece, or any of it's characters! She only owns her OCs! Stop dragging me, Luffy! I know you can't understand me, but STOP! (smacks Luffy over the head)**

**FM13: (sweatdrops...) Oh, dear... Thanks again to Molly Grace 16 for reviewing!**

Chapter 7

The next day there was a tense feeling in the air. Something big was going on. Dogura had gone on an errand for the dumpy lady, who's name I realised, was Dadan. Luffy and Ace were milling around the forest, but Dadan had kept me inside because I had knocked over a large pot of stew that morning.

That afternoon, Luffy and Ace, who must have been feeling sorry for me, decided to join us for lunch. Luffy handed me a huge rack of crocodile meat. I grinned and took a huge bite. Ace tried to make me laugh by sticking his chopsticks up his nostrils, while balancing a plate on his head.

The whole moment was wrecked when Dogura burst into the hut. He shouted something about Sabo.

Ace and Luffy both yelled at Dogura. Ace grabbed his collar and yelled something about Sabo. Dadan smacked the two of them over the head. She yelled at them with tears in her eyes.

Luffy threw down his meat, and ran out the door. "Luffy!" I shouted, running out the door after him, Ace right behind me.

We caught up to him at the shoreline. He was face down on the ground, sniffling and sobbing.

Ace yelled at him, and he started yelling back.

I didn't need to be able to understand them to know something was wrong. Did it have something to do with Sabo? "Luffy? Ace?" I asked. Ace looked at me sadly.

I pulled Luffy up off the ground. "What's going on?" I asked. I knew they couldn't understand me, but I needed to ask.

Luffy walked right up to the edge of the cliff. He hollered out to the open ocean. "Kaizoku-o ni ore wa naru!"

Later, we were sitting together in the forest. Ace was snoring, a marshmallow on a stick burning to a crisp over the fire.

Luffy leaned up against me, and asked me something. I stared at him for a second. His face was still streaked with tears. Even though I didn't understand, I leaned against him, and gave him a hug. "I'm not going anywhere..." I said. "Don't you go anywhere either... okay Luffy?"

_(Ten years later...)_

"So spill it." I said, brushing a few stray red strands of hair out of my eyes. "What's the big news?" Makino blushed up to the roots of her hair. She lifted a hand and showed me a gold ring on her finger. "You're getting married?" I said I said in disbelief, grinning at her. Makino nodded.

"Who's the lucky guy, Makino?"

"You've never met him." she said. "You should have seen him fumbling with his words when he proposed. It was so cute!"

I grinned. "Well," I said, shouldering my large bag. "I'd better get going. Luffy's probably almost ready to go, and I've got a few things to do."

Makino sniffed. "Hey!" I said, "What's wrong?"

Makino brushed a tear from her cheek. "I was just remembering the day you showed up ten years ago. You couldn't understand anyone. Now look at you. No trouble at all. I'm so proud of you."

I blushed. "I'll miss you, Makino." I said, giving her a hug over the counter.

I went and bought some fish, and some limes. After I finished my shopping, I walked to the pier. I stopped, and pulled my book out of my bag. It was still in perfect condition. I ran my finger along the leather spine. There wasn't a crack in the leather. I was honestly extremely surprised that I hadn't managed to wreck the book, considering how much time I had spent in the bush with Ace and Luffy. I always kept my book with me, wherever I went.

I pulled the small note out from between the cover and the first page.

It had taken me ten years to learn the lingo, and I only just understood it completely.

It was written in a beautiful flowing script.

Koe,

Since you can read this now, allow me to say that I'm very proud of you.

I should probably explain the book. It's a logbook that I picked up on one

of my adventures when I was younger. Yes, you can

write in it. You seem like the log keeper type. Take good care of it.

Look after Luffy. Even if he's older than you, he needs someone to stand

beside him. I imagine you're a lot like a sister to him by now. Good luck, Koe.

-Shanks

I had read that note over and over again for the past few weeks. Shanks was proud of me... Even if he'd written this note ten years before, it made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. When I'd landed in this weird world, Shanks was the only one who could calm me down.

A soft splash woke me from my daze. I looked up, and saw a small boat on the edge of the horizon. There was a silhouette of a skinny guy with a straw hat sitting in the boat. I felt a vein throb on my temple. "That idiot..." I growled. "He left me behind."

I ran out to the edge of the pier. "LUFFY, YOU MORON!" I shouted at the top of my lungs.

There was a short pause, then, Luffy's arms stretched all the way up to me, wrapping around my waist a couple of times, his hands gripping my sides.

I looked down at his rubbery arms. I felt the colour drain from my face. "Oh, shit."

I felt a tugging sensation, and I flew off the pier, sailing a few feet above the shimmering surface of the water. I crashed into Luffy with such force, I would have knocked the guts out of him if he hadn't been made of rubber.

**Bonk!**

"Oww..." Luffy said, clutching a huge welt on his head.

"What the hell were you thinking, leaving without me?" I growled. "You are such an idiot."

Luffy looked up at me, and he flashed me his usual goofy grin. "I just wanted to give that a try!" he said giggling. I whacked him over the head again.

I sighed and collapsed on the other side of our small boat. "So," Luffy said, staring up at the clouds. "What's your dream, Koe?"

I smiled. I hadn't given it much thought, but I always knew what I wanted to do. "Well," I said. "There's someone I want to find.-"

"You mean Kiss, right? Your blood brother."

"It's _Keith_... but yeah." I said. "I have to find him. There's no way he could be dead."

Luffy smiled. Then, he looked at the book in my arms, and he cried, "WAAH! KOE! YOUR BOOK!"

I looked down, and noticed my most prized possession was sopping wet. I sighed. "Luffy, relax." I said, using my devil fruit power to extract the water from it's pages. "Oh, right." he said.

"I'm going to keep a record of our journey." I said, patting the book's cover. "I'm going to record everything. The real story of the Strawhat Pirates."

Luffy cocked his head. "Why the Strawhat Pirates?" he asked. I grinned. "I bet you that's what the marines are gonna call you when you get a bounty."

"Ah. So you're the logbook person."

I nodded. I was going to use Shanks' gift to record our journey. Even if Luffy's story becomes a legend, the real story will always be on paper.

I was just about to put my book down, when the boat began to shake. Out of the water burst a huge sea beast. Luffy grinned. "Hey, it's our local sea monster!" Luffy grinned.

I stepped up beside Luffy, raised my arms, and said, "Swirling trap." Immediately, a small whirlpool formed around the sea monster. There was no way it could get away now. "Go get him, Luffy." I said.

"Oh, yeah!" Luffy said, stretching his arm back really far. "Gum gum... PISTOL!" His fist shot forward and knocked the teeth out of the monster. "Oh yeah!" we shouted together, and gave each other a double high five. Laughing, we both sat back down.

"So, you're my first mate!" Luffy said. I blushed to the roots of my hair. "I'm not the right kind of person to be the first mate, Luffy." I said. "Besides, I'm your sister. You don't want me badgering you all the time. You should choose someone else."

Luffy pouted. "Fine. You'll be the second mate then." I sweatdropped. "Okay then," I said. "I'm the second mate. Is that even a position?"

We didn't have much time to talk about that, however. The boat started rattling again. I looked over the side, expecting to see another sea monster, but what I did see was even worse. "Oh, crap." I muttered. A whirlpool. We had been caught in a huge whirlpool and I hadn't even noticed until then.

Luffy laughed. "Hey! It's huge!" he said.

"Oh, don't start, Luffy!" I shouted. "A whirlpool is no laughing matter!" Luffy looked at me with his huge brown eyes. "You can just stop it, can't you?"

"Are you insane?!" I shouted. "That whirlpool is way too big for me to handle."

"Then why don't you just carry me, and we can walk away from the whirlpool. I can drag the boat. You can walk on water. I've seen you." he said.

"Yeah," I said, frowning. "Alone. And for about thirty seconds. There's no way I could carry you and the boat and walk to the next island."

"Why don't you become water and create a current stronger than the whirlpool?" he asked.

I facepalmed. I loved my brother, but he was clueless. "Luffy... I can't _become _water. I ate the water-water fruit: paramythia model. Besides, even if I could, I would drown. I'm just as much of a hammer as you are."

Luffy furrowed his eyebrows, thinking. It looked like hard work. "Hey! We'll use that!"

He pointed to the small barrel at the back of the boat. He pulled off the top, and jumped in. "C'mon!"

A lump of fear formed in my throat. I probably should mention, I'm claustrophobic. Small, enclosed spaces terrify me, even now. I wasn't always like that, but at one point, Ace and I were doing some nosing around Dadan's hut, and Ace forgot I was with him - don't ask me how the hell he managed that... -, and locked me in the closet by accident. I heard him and Luffy running around for two days, calling my name, but they never thought to check the damn closet! Those idiots. By the time they found me, I was starving, dehydrated, and extremely upset.

The thought of being trapped in a small barrel with Luffy scared me more than the thought of drowning.

Luffy poked his head out of the barrel. "It's alright!" he said brightly. "If we drown, we drown together. And I'm not going to drown." I sighed. "Alright..." I said, hardly believing how i got suckered into this. Awkwardly, I clambered into the barrel, right on top of Luffy. When Luffy closed the lid on top of us, I had to make a serious effort not to scream. I started to sweat. All I could hear was my hyperventilation. The darkness was closing in around me, as if the cold hand of death was just inches away from my throat.

Luffy wrapped his rubbery arms around me. "It's alright..." he said. "I'm right here with you."

I sighed with relief. It was a lot better knowing he was there. Then I realised where he had put his arms. "What are you doing?" I asked.

I couldn't see him in the dark, but I'm pretty sure he grinned. "I know you're coulrophobic, so I thought you could use a hug."

There was a short, very awkward pause.

"I'm _claustrophobic_." I deadpanned. Then I smiled. "Thanks..."

"Shishi! Don't mention it!"

I leaned back against him. "Well, this is an interesting start to our adventure." I said. "I wonder what Sabo would say if he could see us now... He'd probably laugh himself silly."

Luffy laughed again. "Sabo's watching us already. He's also watching Ace, wherever he is. We just need to show him how strong we are!"

I nodded. "Right. You will become king of the pirates! And I'll be with you every step of the way."

We drifted along for a few minutes, and Luffy's breathing became soft and steady. I smiled, and shut my eyes. Then, just like when we were little, we fell asleep together.

**A/N: Coulrophobia - the fear of clowns. **

**Yay! Chapter 7 is finished!**

**Where's Koe? **

**(Luffy runs by, dragging Koe by the waist) **

**FM13: (sweatdrops) Okaaay... **

**Koe: (shouts) Let me go already, you rubber-brained ***** (due to foul language, this last word has been sensored)**

**FM13: (smacks head against the keyboard) Writing this story with these people is going to drive me insane...**

**Koe: (crawls over, gasping) I finally got away... What did I miss?**

**FM13: Oh, not much. (ducks as Luffy flies over her head, grabbing Koe by the wrist, shouts something about the ice cream truck, and runs off)**

**Koe: (shouts again) Please review! (side note) Luffy! Let me go!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hi! Here's chapter 8!**

**Koe: Thanks for your help... (glares daggers)**

**FM13: give me a break... You're the one holding an ice cream cone. **

**Luffy: (hands over a half-melted ice cream cone) Here. We got you some! **

**FM13: Thanks... (gasps) Luffy! Don't hold it over my computer!**

**Luffy: (watches as a few drips land on the keyboard) Oh. Sorry, Frosty... **

**FM13: (frowns as I wipe the drips off my computer) Please... Don't call me that. **

**Koe: Okaay... Since the other two are busy, I'll say the disclaimer again. Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of the characters, except of course her OCs. **

Chapter 8

**A/N: Here's a description of Koe ten years later**

**Age: 15**

**Height: 5'2"**

**Hair: Auburn, scruffy, the back tied into a ponytail that reaches between her shoulder blades. **

**Eye colour: Auburn**

**At the moment, she wears a loose workout shirt, brown pants, and she walks around barefoot. **

I woke up abruptly when my head smacked against something. For a moment, I started to panic. Where was I? I was shut in a small space. I was trapped! I started to move, when I was stopped by something wrapped around my middle. I calmed down. _That's right._ I thought. _I'm in a barrel with Luffy. _Judging by the sound of his breathing, he was still asleep. I leaned back against Luffy's chest again. I figured if the barrel was going to do any more rattling around, it would be safer for me to be up against something.

It took a few minutes, but I heard someone's voice. Three people. I could hear one of them grunt, "Hang on boys, I'll open it the old fashioned way." _Uh-oh..._

Then, I felt Luffy stirring behind me. I shifted out of his way. I knew Luffy well enough by then to know how he woke up. Sure enough, Luffy shot up like a rocket.

"YEAH! I SLEPT SO GREAT!"

I stood up after Luffy had gotten out of the barrel. There weren't three people after all. There were four. The three older guys, who were obviously pirates, and a younger guy with pink hair and pink haired kid was trembling like a leaf. He couldn't have been much older than me.

He was short, with a terrified look in his eyes. The three pirate guys were yelling at Luffy, or two of them anyway, one of them was out cold.

Luffy looked at them. "Who the hell are you guys?" he asked, as if that was a common greeting, not out of place when meeting new people.

"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?" the pirates shouted.

"Wait a minute..." I said, climbing out of the barrel and walking up to the two pirates who were still conscious. "Can you tell us where we are exactly? We were drifting along for quite a long time."

"Well, girlie," the first one said, licking his lips. "What are you doing hanging around a wimp like that? You could do better." He jabbed his thumb at Luffy. Luffy looked at him, as if he was trying to figure out what he just said.

I felt anger course through my veins. I saw red, and the next thing I knew, he was out on the ground, a fist impression in his face. "You bastard..." I growled, cracking my knuckles. "What did you say about my brother? You're lucky I don't launch you into the ocean and drown you!"

The pirate that was still awake grabbed his comrades, looked at the two of us in absolute fear, then bolted.

"Shishishi!" Luffy laughed. "Koe, that was awesome!" I blushed and ran my fingers through a rat's nest in my hair. "I guess it was pretty cool, eh?"

"Uhh..."

I turned. I had completely forgotten about the pinkie. He was sitting there, gawking at me and Luffy. "Hey." I said, walking up to him, and placing my hand on his forehead. "That's a nasty bruise you got there."The guy just stared at me, his cheeks and ears pink.

I looked at Luffy. "Did I say something wrong? Bruise, like an injury." "You said it right." Luffy said.

The pinkie looked up. "H-hi... My name is Koby."

"Hey." we both said. "I'm Koe, and this is Luffy." I said.

"Where are we, anyway?" Luffy asked. "Is this a pirate ship?" Koby shook his head. "It's a passenger ship that's being raided by pirates. Pirates under the command of Lady Alvida." He shuddered as he said the name 'Alvida'.

"Oh. So are you one of the pirates or one of the passengers?"

Koby went silent for a second, then started telling us a story of how he messed up one day and ended up a cabin boy for Alvida.

"That wasn't very smart, you know." I said.

"Why don't you just leave?" Luffy asked.

Koby freaked out. "No way, no way, not a chance! Just the thought of Alvida's iron club makes my bladder weak!"

"You're a moron and a coward!" Luffy said, laughing. "I hate people like you!"

Waterfall tears fell down Koby's cheeks. "You don't have to be _that_ frank..." he said, as I cracked up, holding my sides. "So, Luffy, why are you out here?" he asked.

"Oh, I'm gonna become king of the pirates!" Luffy said. "WHAT?!" Koby shouted. "So you guys are pirates too?" We nodded. "If you want to become king of the pirates, that must mean you're after the One Piece!"

Luffy grinned.

"But," Koby continued. "Pretty much every pirate crew on the seas are after the One Piece right now! You could die!"

"Koby..." I said, sitting down on a bench. "If you have a dream, is it really about life and death?"

Koby stopped. He stared at Luffy, who was patting his straw hat.

"I promised a friend a long time ago that I'd gather a crew and become king of the pirates. If I die trying to achieve my dream, then I die." Luffy said.

I smiled. It was nice to see Luffy saying something intelligent for a change. When your brother is as big an idiot as Luffy, you learn to appreciate those small moments.

Koby sighed. "Do you think I could do something like that, like join the marines?"

I raised an eyebrow. "A marine?"

"Of course! It's been my dream since I was a child!"

I just stared at him. "Why should that be up to us to decide what you can or can't do?"

His eyes lit up. "Then I'll do it! I'm gonna become the best marine ever! Then I'll turn around and capture Alvida myself!"

All of a sudden there was a horrible rumbling noise. I dove and slam-tackled Koby out of the way. The ceiling collapsed.

"Just who are you going to capture, Runt?!" Down fell the dumpiest lady I'd ever seen in my life, and that's saying something since I'd lived with Dadan for ten years. This lady was even shorter, and carried a huge iron mace. "Well, Koby?" She said. "Who is that twig?" she said, pointing at Luffy. "A bounty hunter? Well, he isn't Roronoa Zoro, that's for sure. And fighting alongside a little girl? They don't look like they could defeat a bug!"

I held in my irritation. Who did that squatty onion hag think she was?

The onion hag lifted her arms. "Koby! Who is the most beautiful woman on the seas?"

I wanted to say, "Well, it certainly isn't you, that's for sure.", but I figured it would bring more trouble for Koby.

Koby looked like he was about to pass out from fear.

I sat up, shaking the dust and wood splinters out of my hair. I thought Koby was going to chicken out and say what she wanted him to, but Luffy just had to open his mouth.

"Who's the tough looking old biddy?" he asked, pointing to the fat lady.

The onion hag's jaw dropped. The pirates on deck above us looked just as astounded as she was.

I started to laugh. Things were going to get pretty interesting...

"Luffy..." Koby said. "You have a death wish. Out of all the pirates on the seas she's easily the... the..."

I stared at him. What was Koby going to say?

"She's easily the ugliest, fattest old hag of them all!"

Luffy and I doubled over laughing.

"You're dead, Kid!" Alvida lifted her mace and slammed it down towards Koby, who screamed like a little kid. Luffy intercepted her, then used his gum-gum pistol to send her flying!

"Nice!" I shouted, pumping my fist in the air. Then, I happened to look up. there was her entire pirate crew above us, just staring with their mouths hanging open. "Hey, Luffy." I said, jumping up onto the top deck beside them. "Can I handle these people?" Luffy grinned. "Sure!"

I willed the ocean to rise. I imagined a big wave. Water started rising from the surface of the sea, and a huge wave engulfed the deck, washing all the pirates out into the water. Twenty-five very wet, very astonished pirates gaped at me from ten feet below.

"Wow..." Koby said, his eyes wide. "What the heck are you people?"

Luffy grinned. "I'm a rubber man! And Koe's a water controlling girl!" I cuffed him upside the head. "Damn it, Luffy. That part about me was my line. Now I don't look half as cool." "Oh. Sorry Koe." Luffy said brightly.

"C'mon!" Luffy said, dragging Koby over to a small boat, tossing him in. I jumped in last, adjusting my bag so it wouldn't slip off my shoulder. "Let's take you to a marine base so you can join up! Koe, where's the nearest base from here?"

I placed my hand on the surface of the water. "Just a moment." I said. "The sea gets kinda angry when I ask for info, so hold onto something." Luffy and Koby gripped the sides of the boat while it rolled around in the only section of choppy water there was. I smiled and wiped the sweat from my forehead. "Yes! There's a marine base town to the northwest of here. Twenty nautical miles."

"Wow!" Koby said, backing up. "How on earth did you do that?" I grinned at him. "I'm not sure... All I can say is, the ocean can speak. The sea has it's own personality. Just my luck the east blue is moody."

Luffy grinned again. "Let's go, then!"

Koby manned the rudder, while Luffy and I tried to make ourselves useful. This meant that I was speeding the boat along with my water-water fruit powers, and Luffy just sat there.

"So..." Luffy said, picking a stray booger from his nose. "We need a crew, Koe. I mean, I'd love to get to the grand line now, but we're not ready yet."

I nodded. Then, I looked at Koby. "Hey, Koby. The onion hag mentioned a really dangerous pirate hunter around that area." Koby turned a little pale. "Yeah." he said. "His name is Roronoa Zoro."

Luffy grinned. "What're you thinking, Luffy?" I asked. "Well," he said, still grinning like a maniac. "I figure if he's strong enough, I'd let him join the crew!"

Koby started freaking out again. He started talking so fast I could hardly understand him. "I'm not going to just ask him to join." Luffy said, as if this was completely obvious, and that it wasn't something _he_ would do. Yeah right. "I need to see if he's a good guy." Again, Koby shouted at him. Then, he turned to me, but he was still talking too fast. "Take it easy, Koby, this isn't my first language." I said, sticking my foot up so he ran right into it. Face first. That must not have been very pleasant.

"Are you going along with this?" he asked. I shrugged. "If Luffy says he wants something, he doesn't stop wanting it. So, I might as well go along with it."

"You seriously don't believe that a guy like him would join your crew, Luffy?" Koby asked. Luffy just stared. "What's so bad about him?"

Koby seemed to pale even more. "Zoro is the man who sliced up his targets like an animal bent on carnage! He's been called nothing less than a demon in human form!"

**Luffy: Wow, Frosty, that was another long one...**

**FM13: (whacks him upside the head) How many times do I have to tell you, DON'T CALL ME FROSTY!**

**Koe: Tut tut, you two... (bursts out laughing)**

**FM13: Oh, shut up... **

**Luffy: (laughs) Thanks for the reviews! They're awesome! See you next chapter!**

**Koe: Luffy, you forgot to remind people to review...**

**Luffy: Oops... (grins like an idiot) Please review! Gum-Gum See you later!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey, here's chapter 9. **

**Koe: I'm excited to see what happens. **

**FM13: Right. You'll meet the demon himself!**

**Luffy: He'll be our musician!**

**FM13: Why?**

**Koe: (snorts) Don't argue with him. It won't do you any good. **

**Luffy: Let me do the disclaimer this time!**

**FM13: Sure. You'll do great!**

**Luffy: Frosty doesn't own One Piece! She only owns her OCs and this fic!**

**FM13: Don't call me Frosty, Luffy! That joke is going to get old!**

**Luffy: It's not... (pouts) **

**Koe: (bursts out laughing again) This could go on for a while, so enjoy!**

**Koby: (waterfall tears) Guys... You forgot me...**

Chapter 9

It took us awhile to get to get to the marine base city. Luffy and Koby went on ahead, while I tied the boat up. When I looked up from the knot I was tying, Luffy and Koby had disappeared. "Those idiots..." I grumbled. "Probably went to the base without me. I want to see that pirate hunter too..."

I was about to go to the base, when I passed a tavern. "Excuse me..." I turned to see a lady in her late had dark brown, shoulder length hair. She had a kind face, but it was twisted with effort. "I was wondering if you could help me with this..." She was carrying a pile of boxes. None of them looked like they were less than five pounds. "Sure." I said. "Hand me half."

It took us fifteen minutes to finish the job, which was putting the boxes in the back room of her tavern. She thanked me many times. "Don't mention it. Take it easy." I said.

I really was in a fix now. I had lost Luffy and Koby. The only thing I could do was head to the marine base.

Of course Luffy wasn't there. The only person there was a guy, probably a criminal, tied to cross shaped posts driven into the ground. He was about nineteen, wearing a white shirt, black pants and boots, a green belly band - what do they call it, a haramaki? - , and a black bandana on his head. He was really ripped, too. He looked like he'd spent the past few years lifting really heavy weights.

He looked up, and stared at me with his piercing brown eyes. "What do you want?" he asked. I just looked at him from over the wall. "Maybe I can ask this guy." I said. I jumped over the wall, and walked leisurely toward him. "Hey," I said. "Have you seen a guy with black hair and a straw hat walking around here?" The older teen glared at me, and said, "Yeah, so what?" "Any idea where he went?"

"Look, Brat." he said. "He's not here, so get out of here!" I felt a vein throb on my temple. "I'm not a brat! I'm fifteen!" I smacked the bandana off his head. I gasped when I got an eyeful of his hair. "What's up with your hair?!" I gasped. "It's green!" "And what of it?" he asked. "And you need to get out of here." When I shook my head he asked, "Why the hell not?!"

"You still haven't told me where my brother is." I said. "He was looking for a pirate hunter called Roronoa Zoro."

The moss-head frowned. "Well, that's me. I'm telling you that hat kid isn't here, Brat! And you'd better leave before the marines show up!" I felt even more annoyed. Again with the brat comment. I smirked. "What?" Zoro growled. "Oh, nothing." I said. "It's just you're a little shorter than I expected you to be."

Zoro growled. "What the hell, girl?" I just grinned. "What? I just expected the feared pirate hunter Zoro to be at _least_ six feet." Yes! I was really irritating him now! _If he won't tell me where Luffy is, I'll just torment him._

It only took me two minutes. Zoro sighed. "He decided to break into the base and get my swords."

I facepalmed. "That idiot." I grumbled. Then, I perked up. "Does this mean you're joining our crew?" "What? You're with him?"

"Well, yeah. Why do you think I was asking you about him? He's my brother."

Zoro rolled his eyes. "Another reason for me to refuse his offer..." Again, I cuffed him upside the head.

"If you don't stop smacking me, I'll-" he was cut off by a thump, and someone groaning. I turned around, and there was Koby, lying in a heap. "Koby!" I called.

"Oh, Koe!" he said. Then, he blushed. "W-what are you doing here?" I flicked a stray strand of hair out of my eyes. "I was looking for Luffy. Also, I was trying to convince Marimo here to join the crew."

Zoro grew shark teeth. "What the hell did you just call me, Brat?" "My mastery of the language isn't top notch, but marimo does mean 'moss ball', doesn't it?" I said, turning to Koby.

Instead of answering, Koby ran up to Zoro, and started working at the rope tying his right arm.

"Uhh, Koby..." I said. "I think you should wait until Zoro settles down a little before you untie him. He looks strong enough to break me in half." Zoro chuckled humorlessly.

"He needs to get out of here." Koby said, working at the ropes. "Look, you stupid kids, I can't leave yet! I've still got ten days left!" Zoro growled. "Not quite," Koby said. "They're going to execute you tomorrow..."

"What?" Zoro gasped. Koby kept working at the knots. "Helmeppo never intended to honour your agreement. That's why Luffy knocked him flat!"

"So, what's the story here?" I asked. "Who's this Helmeppo? And if this Helmeppo is with the marines, Luffy is in big trouble right off the bet." Koby and Zoro just looked at me. "I think you mean 'right off the _bat_'." Zoro deadpanned. I blushed. "That isn't the issue at hand here!" I shouted. "T-this isn't my first language!" Damn it, I hate it when I make idiotic mistakes like that.

"Helmeppo is the marine captain Morgan's son." Koby explained. "Both he and his father believe in executing those who can't obey their laws." I facepalmed. "Some leaders for a small town..."

"No kidding." Koby said. Then, there was a deafening bang, and Koby fell backwards, blood spurting from his shoulder. "KOBY!" I shouted. _Oh my god._ I thought. _He's dead! Now what?_ I stopped freaking out when I heard someone on the ground shout, "I've been shot! Blood! I'm bleeding!"

"Oh, good." Zoro said, looking down at Koby. "You're alive." I looked up in the direction the shot had come from. No one was there any more.

Then, someone behind me shouted, "End of the line!" in a very gruff voice.

I turned, and standing behind us was a full unit of marines. Standing behind them was a tall man with blond hair, and a huge axe for a hand. "Who's that?" I asked Zoro. The old man answered my question for me. "Roronoa Zoro. You've been pulling some interesting moves around here. What's this, some poorly executed coup, you planned with the straw hat?"

I stopped. Zoro said, "I've always fought alone, the way a real man does. Not like a coward who hides behind his wall of expendable-" I didn't understand the last word, but it plucked a nerve, anyway.

He started yelling so fast, I could barely understand him. I got the message, though. The marines pointed their rifles at us. I got into a stance, Koby started screaming, and Zoro just stared. I would protect them. I could handle it.

A lot of things happened at once. Morgan yelled 'fire!', many guns fired at once, a shadow landed in front of me, and no bullets hit their mark. Luffy was standing in front of me, his arms outstretched, with three swords strapped to his back.

"You!" Zoro shouted.

"Luffy!" Koby screamed.

"Straw hat!" Morgan shouted.

I grinned. "It's about time... idiot."

There was a pinging sound, and all the bullets were fired back where they came from. Morgan looked incredulous as one narrowly missed his head.

"Shishishishishi! That won't work on me!" Luffy laughed. "Wh-what the hell are you?" Zoro asked.

Luffy grinned. "I'm Monkey D. Luffy! And I'm gonna be king of the pirates!"

There was a bit of a pause. "King of the pirates?" Zoro said, rolling his eyes. "You must be completely out of your rubbery mind." "Nope." I said, leaning up against the crossed sticks he was tied to. "He doesn't think much, but he's completely serious about his dreams."

"Prepare to fire, again!" Morgan shouted. I stepped up to meet them. "I'll handle them, Luffy." I said. "You get Moss-ball here untied." "Hey!" Zoro shouted. "What did you just call me?!" Of course he didn't understand english. I grinned. _I just got a great idea!_ I thought. _But that can wait until he joins the crew._ "You're gonna get yourself killed, Brat!" Zoro shouted. I felt a vein on my temple throb. "Hey, Moss-ball." I said, grinning. "Just sit back, relax, and enjoy the show."

"Fire!" Morgan shouted.

I raised my arms, and muttered, "Junsai."

An entire volley of shots flew towards us. Zoro and Koby flinched. When nothing happened, both of them looked up. All the bullets had changed trajectory, slamming into the ground just in front of my feet. A wall of water was in front of me.

"What?!" Zoro shouted. "What the hell are you?" I grinned. "I ate the water-water fruit paramythia model. I can control water freely." I said, as if it wasn't a big deal. Zoro gave me a weird look. "Great, you're a freak too." he said. "I prefer to think of myself as... slightly different." I laughed.

"S-so, you can deflect bullets with water?" Koby asked. I shrugged. "Not exactly." I said. "Bullets change trajectory when they hit water. I just manipulate the current in the water shield, and I can direct the bullet's trajectories."

The marines were just as shocked as the two guys behind me were, only there were about thirty of them. "Captain!" one of them said. "What are we gonna do? Bullets don't affect these people!" Morgan just looked angry. "Are we not the marines?! If guns don't work we chop!" The entire battalion charged.

"Hey, Brat!" Zoro said. "Can you change the trajectory of a sword charge?" I grinned the way Luffy did when he deflected the bullets. "Nope!" I said. Zoro and Koby sweatdropped. "Hey, Luffy!" I said, turning to see how he was progressing with the knots. I stopped when I realised Zoro was still tied up. "What the hell have you been doing, Luffy?" I shouted. "I'm trying to buy you time, remember?"

Then, Luffy said, "Geez, the knots just got tighter..." Zoro grew shark teeth. "Just give me my sword, dammit!" I smirked. "So, you'll join the crew?"

Zoro grinned back. "Why not? Besides, if I don't take your side, I'll just end up dead on these sticks. You've got yourself a pirate!"

Luffy grinned. "Yes! You'll join my crew!" He started celebrating. "Oh, yeah! Oh, yeah!" I turned. "Luffy, I can't hold them off forever!" I was using my junsei to Keep the marines back, but it was really hard.

"Give me one of my damn swords NOW!" Zoro shouted.

I felt my strength failing. "I can't do much more." I said. The shield fell, and the marines ran through. One of them slashed at me. I couldn't move. I had used too much energy. I shut my eyes.

**Clang!**

I opened my eyes, and standing above me, his three swords blocking about five each, was Zoro. He had his white sword in his mouth, but I swear I saw him smirk. "You look like you're having a hard time standing, Brat." I swear a vein on my temple tripled in size. "Remind me to never save you from a marine-style execution again." I grumbled.

Zoro ignored me. Instead, he turned his attention on Luffy. "Today, I become a pirate, after having fought the marines." he said. "However, my only obligation will be to achieve my ambition."

"And that would be...?" I asked, rolling my eyes. "To be nothing less than the world's greatest swordsman." Zoro replied. "If I have to abandon my dream during this voyage, I'll make you commit hara-kiri!" he said to Luffy. "Got it?"

Now, normally I would get royally pissed off if someone threatened my brother with ritual suicide, but I figured Luffy wasn't gonna step a toe out of that line.

Luffy grinned. "World's greatest swordsman, eh? The king of the pirates wouldn't have anything but the best on his crew."

There was a short pause. "Uh, guys..." I said. "Why don't we finish talking _after_ we finish off the marines."

Morgan charged. Luffy jumped to meet him. He delivered a really good hit to Morgan's jaw. I sat up, and watched the fight. Luffy had Morgan on the ground now, and was punching him repeatedly.

"H-HEY! Straw hat!" I turned to see who'd said that. Standing behind me was a guy of about twenty, with a double chin and an ugly blonde bowl cut. He had a huge bruise on his cheek, and a wild look in his eyes. _That must be Helmeppo... _I thought. He was pointing a pistol at Koby's head.

"Hey, Luffy." I said.

Luffy stopped punching Morgan and looked up. "..."

Helmeppo was shaking like a leaf. "If you value your squatty little friend's life, you'll back down!" he shouted.

I frowned. "Hey, Blondie." I said. "Don't do anything rash." I started walking towards him. If you shoot Koby, it'll be on your head. You won't be able to live it down... If you're human, that is..."

Then, **BANG!**

Pain exploded in my right shoulder. Helmeppo had shot me at point-blank. I hit the ground with a thud.

"KOE!" Luffy and Koby shouted.

"See!" Helmeppo said, pointing his pistol back at Koby's head. "That and worse will happen to him if you don't stop!"

Koby was trembling worse than ever. "H-Hey., Koby..." I managed, looking up at my terrified pink-haired friend. Koby's expression set. "Luffy, listen!" he said. "Do whatever you have to do! Even if I die!"

Luffy grinned. He started walking forward. "Right." he said, grinning. "You hear that, you big idiot? Koby's ready to die by your hand." As Luffy advanced, Helmeppo shivered. "Don't you come a step closer! I'll shoot him! I will!"

Luffy stretched his arm back, and said, "Gum-Gum..." A shadow loomed over him. _Morgan!_

"Time to die!" he shouted.

"PISTOL!"

I used the last of my energy. Focus on the puddle at Morgan's feet...

Luffy's attack hit Helmeppo square on the nose. He flew into the gate on the other side of the field. "Nice one..." Luffy said. "Good work Zoro, Koe!" Zoro was standing behind Morgan. He had slashed him across the chest. Morgan fell over, unconscious.

I tried to sit up, but it was hard work. The combination of using too much energy and getting shot in the shoulder had drained me. Luffy walked over to Helmeppo, who was, surprisingly, still conscious. He picked him up by his collar, and punched him again, crashing his head into the wall. "That's for shooting my sister!" he growled. I smiled. "Thanks, Luffy." Luffy turned around and grinned.

Zoro walked up, and said, "You are pretty tough, aren't you?" he said. "You tripped that captain guy with the water. He fell right into my strike. I doubt it would have been a one-hit-KO without that."

I stuck my tongue out. "Well, I couldn't let my brother get his head split open, now could I? Hee hee!" Zoro leant down, took my arm, and picked me up. I gasped as he lifted me off my feet. "You alright?" he asked. I nodded. "Good. I'd hate to think you'd die from a meager shot wound like that...Brat."

I frowned. Brat indeed. I kicked him in the shin. "Oww!" he said, dropping me. "What was that for?"

"For calling me Brat again... Moss Ball." I saw a vein in Zoro's temple throb. Then, he collapsed.

"Zoro!" Koby screamed. "Are you okay? What's wrong?!"

"I'm just... Hungry..." he said. I bent down and, with effort, grabbed one of his arms, and hauled it over my shoulder. "Hey, Luffy." I said. "Gimme a hand. I can't carry this guy on my own."

Luffy jogged up, and took Zoro's other arm. I started to walk. "Hey, Koe..." Luffy said, poking me in the shoulder. "You're dragging him." I smirked. "I meant to. That's what he gets for calling me 'Brat'."

"Phew!" Zoro said, patting his stomach. "Having not eaten for three weeks, I was ready to gnaw through my bootstraps!" We all laughed.

We were sitting in the tavern that belonged to the lady I'd helped an hour ago. The lady and a little girl who I assumed was her daughter were running around, fixing food, and bringing us drinks.

Luffy popped a fork out of his mouth. "I can't believe you two are done eating already... Lightweights."

Zoro raised an eyebrow. "How the hell can you have a bigger appetite than a guy who hasn't eaten in weeks?"

"Oh, he'll eat every crumb of food in this place if he's really hungry." I said, taking a sip of my orange juice.

The little girl walked up to Luffy, and said, "You're the most amazing man I ever met!" Luffy grinned. "I know!" he said, through a mouth full of meat. "I'll be even more amazing once I have the One Piece... Oh, and the best crew on the seas."

Zoro grinned. "So," he said, putting down his water glass. "How many others have you recruited besides me and the Brat here?" He ducked to avoid the fish I threw at his head.

"It's just us." Luffy said. Zoro stopped, like someone had pressed a pause button. "J-just-" He pointed from Luffy, to himself, to me. Luffy nodded. "So, we're what amounts to an entire pirate crew?" Zoro said. Luffy nodded.

"Okay..." Zoro said. "At least tell me you have a ship." I did my best to stifle a laugh. _Ten, nine, eight, seven, six..._ Luffy pointed out the window.

_Five, four, three, two, one... _

Zoro looked out the window, and saw our little boat. A dog was standing at the bow, hiking up it's leg.

"You're kidding..." he said. "Nope!" Luffy said. "But we'll have an enormous one before long! With a really big flag!" Zoro laughed. "Alright!" he said. "So, where are we going."

Luffy and I both answered at the same time. "The Grand Line!"

Koby, who was drinking orange juice, spat it out. "What?!" he screeched. "You have three crew members! You can't be serious! You'll be killed!" Zoro's eyes narrowed. "Why would you care?" he asked. "You're not coming with us, are you?"

Koby blushed. "No... But I still care about the three of you. Is that so wrong?"

I got up. "You guys finish your little chat." I said. "I'll get the boat ready." Luffy grinned. "Sure! We'll be along in a minute!" I got up, thanked the lady and her daughter, and walked out the door. When I got out into the street, I saw a group of marines, making their way to the tavern. _Smells like trouble..._ I thought. _Luffy can handle it._

A few minutes later, Luffy and Zoro walked up to the pier. "Ready to go?" I asked. They both nodded. "How'd it go with Koby?"

Luffy shrugged. "He's not with us. I guess he joined the marines." I nodded. "Right. Let's go."

"This is a pretty fitting way to leave." Zoro remarked. "Getting driven out. Given no choice but to leave." I frowned. "Driven out?" I asked. "What the hell did you guys do?"

There wasn't much of a problem, apparently. "Luffy! Koe!" I heard someone shout.

I turned back, to see Koby, surrounded by marines. "I could never thank you enough!" he said. "You've done more for me than anyone ever has!" He saluted in that odd way the marines do.

I smiled. "Ready to shove off?" I asked. Luffy nodded.

As we sailed away, Luffy called, "Bye, Koby! Take it easy!" I smiled. When we were almost out of earshot, I heard someone say something about no dinner for a week, for saluting pirates.

**Well, now Zoro's a part of the crew!**

**Koe: We have a first mate now!**

**Luffy: Shame he's not a musician, though...**

**Zoro: What the hell are you saying? (smacks him over the head)**

**Koe: He sure is short, though.**

**Zoro: (Grows shark teeth) Would you stop mentioning that?! There's nothing wrong with being less than six feet! You're eight inches shorter than me anyway!**

**Koe: (smirks) You're blushing. **

**FM13: Can you guys save it for later...? This is getting awkward... **

**Luffy: (laughs like a maniac) I love it! I have such a weird crew!**

**Koe and Zoro: You're the weirdest of all of us you know...**

**FM13: Please review! **


	10. Chapter 10

**Hello, everyone!**

**Koe: (yawns) You're in a good mood today...**

**FM13: Of course! I managed to post nine chapters yesterday, and I'm going to make it a goal to post more than one today. **

**Koe: (sighs) Okay... Okay... I get it. We just need to keep it down. We're the only ones awake right now. **

**Luffy: (leaps out of bed, a huge snot bubble coming from his nose) FOOD!**

**Koe and FM13: (jump in surprise) **

**Luffy: (sniffs) No food yet... (collapses)**

**FM13: (sweatdrops) Shall we move on?**

**Koe: (nods) Yes... Okay, frostmoon13 doesn't own one piece or any of it's characters. She only owns her OCs. **

**FM13: Thanks to Molly Grace 16 and Chocolatluver4ever for reviewing! We love reading your reviews!**

Chapter 10

"Uggg... I'm so hungry..." Luffy whined. "Shut up, Luffy.." I grumbled. "We don't have any food."

Zoro leaned back against the side of our small boat. "So, when are we going to reach land?"

Luffy shrugged. "I dunno... Hey, Koe! Where's the nearest island?"

I glared at him. "Luffy, I can't always ask the sea for info. It gets angrier and angrier the more I ask it. The water around our boat will get more and more turbulent. We'll capsize!"

"Oh."

I leaned back. "Hey, Luffy. I'm gonna have a nap." Without waiting for his answer, I closed my eyes.

_( flashback starts)_

Luffy, Ace, and I were causing trouble in town again. This time, we were being chased by a bunch of angry tavern proprietors. Luffy had gotten away, but I had tripped, and Ace had stayed behind to help me. "Huff... Huff... We lost 'em." Ace managed.

I was nine, and Ace was fourteen. He patted my hair. "You okay?" He asked. I nodded.

"Hurts..." I managed. Languages had never been my strong suit, so I still wasn't very good. He chuckled, and pulled a bandage out of a bag on his waist. He placed the bandage on my knee. "Let's go." he said.

I nodded, and followed him through the streets.

When we were about halfway out of town, we passed a group of boys. One of them said something too fast for me to understand. He was about eleven, with a crew cut, and small beady eyes. He put his hand on my shoulder and said something else. I still couldn't understand.

Ace did, though. And he wasn't happy. He charged the boy, and punched him so hard, he knocked half his teeth out. "Ace!" I shouted.

The rest of the boys ran away. Ace was so angry, I swear I could see steam coming out his ears.

He took my hand, and led me along.

Like usual, I was confused. "Ace? What?"

Ace sat down on a rock at the edge of the forest. He started talking, but he was so angry, he spoke too fast for me to understand. "Ace..." I said, "Slower..."

Ace took a deep breath, and let out a long, slow, exhalation. "Do you know what he said to you, Koe?" he asked. I shook my head. "What?" Ace shook his head. "It's not nice. Not nice at all. It was the worst thing anyone could have said to you, Koe. I couldn't stand it."

"What he said?" I asked. Ace sighed. "You have a good memory." he said. "I'll explain when you're older." Then, he motioned for me to sit next to him. I did. "Listen, Koe." he said, crossing his arms. "Never let anyone insult your family... Ever. And don't take that kind of comment that that guy said to you. If someone like him insults you or your family, you beat the - out of them, you understand?"

I didn't understand one of the words, but I got the feeling it was slightly worse than 'snot'.

I didn't answer him right away. Ace patted my head, hard. "Understand?" he said, in a slightly sharper tone. I nodded. "Luffy do that too?" I asked. Ace nodded. "He would try to kill that guy... If he didn't trip over his own rubbery feet first." he added with a chuckle.

I nodded. Then I looked at him and grinned. "I do that for you too, Ace." I said.

Ace smiled at me. "Oh!" he said. "There's Luffy!" He grabbed my hand, and let me to the forest, where Luffy was waiting, waving frantically at us.

_(Flashback ends)_

"Koe!" I heard Zoro shout. "Wake up!"

I sat up so fast, I smacked into something. "Oww..." I grumbled. That's when I realised that the thing I'd smacked my face into was Zoro's face. And for those who are thinking, 'What?! They kissed?!', it wasn't like that at all. I smacked my forehead into his nose. "Damn it..." We both grumbled.

"What's up, Zoro?" I asked.

"Look!" I heard Luffy shout. "There's a bird up there." I squinted up at the clouds. There was a rather large silhouette of a bird. I raised my eyebrows. "Looks like it's pretty close." I said.

Luffy grinned. "Let's eat it!" he said. "Alright..." I said. "But how are we gonna catch it?"

"That's what I was wondering." Zoro said. "I asked him that when we were talking during your nap."

Luffy grinned. "Turns out Zoro was just lost! He didn't sail the seas to become a bounty hunter."

Zoro frowned. "I set out to sea in search of one man. But then I couldn't make it to my village."

I stifled a laugh. "So you're short _and _directionally challenged! That's great!"

"Hey!" Zoro snapped. "Shut up, Koe!"

"Anyway..." I said. "What about that bird?" Luffy's eyes brightened. "I'll catch it with my gum-gum rocket, then you and Zoro kill it when I crash it into the boat." We both nodded.

Luffy got in position. He rocketed himself into the sky. I watched him, then, I squinted. Something wasn't right. He looked like he was going a little higher than we had expected. The bird looked to be about four times Luffy's size.

"Help!" Luffy shouted from very high up. The bird had his head in it's beak.

Zoro grabbed the oars, and I used my water-water fruit powers to propel the boat forward. "You Moron!" Zoro shouted. "What the hell's going on now?!" I raised my eyebrows, I could feel some strange vibrations in the sea. "Zoro!" I called. "There are three people in front of us! Thirty feet and closing."

"Hey!" one of them called. "Help! Help us!"

"Gah, I can't believe we ran into shipwreckers at a time like this..." Zoro growled. "We can't stop!" he shouted. "You'll have to climb on! Keep up the speed, Koe." he added.

The three guys got onto deck, gasping and spluttering. "Wow..." I said, walking over to them. "I'm surprised you guys managed to get on." "You two would have left us to die!" they shouted.

I crossed my arms over my chest, but I flinched. My shoulder was flaring up again. Then, the three guys pulled out their swords. "Stop this boat now." one said. "This boat is now the property of the Buggy pirates." He pointed his sword at me. "Do as we say, or this poor injured chick is gonna get it."

I felt a vein throb in my temple. 'Poor injured chick'? Oh, he didn't...

Zoro just looked up and said, "**Hunh?**"

It was over in a flash. Soon, they were all rowing. "We're so sorry..." one of them said."We didn't realise you were the infamous pirate hunter Zoro..."

Zoro sighed. He sat next to me, helping me with my bandages. "Thanks to you three clowns, we lost sight of our friend. " Then he turned to me. "You can't see him, can you? Your eyesight is better than mine, as far as I can tell."

I took a look at the sky. I sighed. "Nope, I can't see him." I said. "But, knowing Luffy, he`s probably in some kind of trouble.''

Zoro nodded. ''So, where are we gonna go now?'' I shrugged. Honestly, I didn't know what to do.

''So, what do you think we should do?'' One of them said. ''If captain Buggy realises a girl stole our boat and our treasure, he'll kill us for sure.''

I raised an eyebrow. ''I've been meaning to ask...'' I said. ''Who's this Buggy guy, anyway?''

The three guys immediately started explaining. ''He's the most notorious pirate on these waters. He has the power of a devil fruit.'' I raised my eyebrows. "And?"

"What do you mean, and?" they shouted, growing shark teeth. "And, on top of all that, he's a truly terrifying man."

I shrugged, wincing from the wound in my shoulder.

The three pirate guys paused and looked at me. "You got a real serious injury there, girl." said the one on the right. "You looking for a hospital or something?" "Don't you DARE stop rowing!" Zoro and I both shouted, growing shark teeth. "Anywho..." I said to Zoro. "I get the feeling Luffy isn't too far from here, and there must be land close by." "Why would you say that?" he asked. "well, besides the news coo, there aren't too many birds that fly over the open ocean. That bird was a gull. Gulls, no matter how big they are, never stray too far out from shore.-" I paused. "What was that?"

Zoro cocked his head to one side. "What was what?" I cupped my hands behind my ears. "I thought I heard an explosion... Coming from over there." I pointed to a small dot on the horizon. "There's an island over there, masters." the fat one said. "It's an island we occupied."

I placed my hand on the cold surface of the sea. Our small boat started rolling around dangerously in the choppy waves. "He's right." I said. "If these morons row fast, and I manipulate the currents, we should be able to get there in fifteen minutes." Zoro nodded. Then, he smirked. "You know, for a brat, you're pretty good out here." Without thinking, I smacked him with my right hand. "Stop calling me a brat, Moss-ball!" Pain flared in my shoulder again. I gasped, and clutched my shoulder. "But I'll take the rest of it as a compliment..." I managed.

Fifteen minutes later, we were docked at the small port town. "Wow..." I said, stepping out of the boat. "What a mess..." An entire row of houses and shops was in ruin. The place looked pretty much uninhabited, unless you counted the pirates.

One of the pirates that was climbing out said, "That looks like the work of one of the captain's beloved Buggy Balls."

Zoro and I both stifled a laugh. ''Buggy Balls?''

''Well,'' I said, taking a few steps forward. ''I guess we should split up and look for Luffy.''

Zoro nodded. "See you in a few minutes, then." he said, before dashing off.

I grinned. I started down the road. Then, I remembered what Zoro had said about him getting lost, unable to return to his village. I smacked my forehead. "Maybe I shouldn't have let him go alone..." I muttered. Oh well. Nothing I could've done at that point. As far as I could tell, the town had been abandoned for some time. The only noise came from the largest pub in town. I decided to head over that way.

It took me awhile to get there. When I did, I clambered up onto the roof above them. This is what I saw: A whole bunch of pirates, with a huge cannon in the centre of the rooftop. Standing beside the cannon was a guy with blue hair and, get this, a huge red nose; and a girl of about eighteen with orange hair and brown eyes.

On the other side of the rooftop was a large cage, and inside the cage was, you guessed it, my idiot brother, Luffy.

"Luffy, you moron..." I grumbled. I wanted to bust him out of there right at that moment, but I was vastly outnumbered. Luffy didn't seem to be in imminent danger, so I decided to sit back and watch the show.

The blue haired guy, who must have been the captain of the rabble, judging by his getup, said, "Light it." One of his lackeys ran up, pointed the cannon over the side, and lit the fuse. There was a deafening explosion. A red cannonball exploded from the cannon's mouth. The blast was so powerful, the vibrations nearly knocked me off the roof. That wasn't the scary part, though. The cannonball completely obliterated an entire row of houses!

Then, the blue haired guy said, "Load another one." He handed the orange haired girl the box of matches. "You fire the second one." he said. "Blow your old boss to smithereens!"

The girl looked scared. All the pirates shouted, "Fire!" Buy the girl didn't move. Finally, a pirate walked up to her, took the matches, and lit the fuse. The girl gave a squeak, and all of a sudden, **whap!** The girl had whacked him under the chin with a long bo-staff.

Then, all hell broke loose. Pirates yelled and attacked, the girl whacking more and more of them aside. But the fuse was lit! I jumped down from my hiding place, then, called on my devil fruit power. Damn! There wasn't any water anywhere near us! The girl found a solution, however. She grabbed the fuse in both hands. She screamed out in pain. I wanted to see if she was okay, but I had other things on my mind.

Then, I noticed something. There were tables with large flagons of beer on them. Wait a minute... Beer! There must have been water in beer! I called on the booze, and it responded. I made a slashing motion with my arms, and it hit five pirates who had tried to attack Tangerine. I decided to call her Tangerine until I learned her real name. Then, one of the pirates knocked me over, and I had to focus on getting him off me.

_Damn it! If I can't get there in time-_

**Smack!**

"Now that isn't nice..." I heard a gruff voice say. "Ganging up on one girl like that." Zoro was standing over Tangerine, his swords out.

I smirked. "Took you long enough..." I muttered. "I'd bet big money you got lost." Zoro grew shark teeth. "You shut up!" he shouted.

Luffy grinned. "Hey, Zoro! Hey, Koe! Help me get out of here!" Zoro sighed. "You're nothing but trouble." he grumbled. "First a bird flies off with you, then I find you playing around in some cage." Then, he turned to me. "Here." He tossed me a water bottle. "You might need that." he said.

"Thanks..." I said, catching it with one hand. Now I could kick some serious clown pirate ass.

Then, the blue haired guy made his big entrance. "Well," he said. "If it isn't the famous pirate hunter Roronoa Zoro. Are you here for my head?" Zoro just glared at him. "I gave up pirate hunting." he said. "I'm just here for my friends."

I knelt down next to Tangerine. "Who is that?" I muttered. Tangerine looked at me like I was crazy. "That guy's Roronoa Zoro! I'm surprised you haven't heard of-" "Not Zoro..." I deadpanned. "I meant Big-Nose over there." Tangerine just looked at me. "That's Buggy the clown. He's the captain of the Buggy pirates."

I raised an eyebrow. "So this guy is the devil fruit user..." I muttered. _Wonder what his power is..._

"Well..." Buggy said, snickering. "I'm interested in you. Killing you would be a nice feather in my cap." Zoro gave him a death glare. "Back off before I pluck _all_ your feathers."

I stifled a giggle. "Good one."

Buggy charged. "Die flashily!" he shouted. Zoro charged, and slashed buggy clean in two, and cutting off his arm in the process. Silence fell. Then, the pirates started laughing. "Unreal." Tangerine said. "Their captain is lying dead on the ground, and they're laughing."

I bit my finger, thinking. "He had the power of a devil fruit... I wonder what that was..." My train of thought derailed when I heard Zoro cry out in pain. There was a knife sticking out of his right side. "Zoro!" Luffy and I both shouted. I ran up to him, and caught him as he fell. Unfortunately, I caught him with my right arm, and it jarred my injured shoulder. I gasped in pain, collapsing to my knees.

"That Buggy's still alive!" I managed.

If you've never seen a guy's severed head, arm, and torso float around in the air and come back together, then I can't explain the feeling to you. It certainly came as a surprise.

"The chop-chop fruit!" Buggy shouted. "That's the devil fruit I ate!" I frowned at him. "Chop-chop fruit? What the hell..."Buggy grinned like a maniac. "I'm a chop-chop man and I can't be defeated by the sword!"

Inside his cage, Luffy said, "Chop-chop man?! That guy's a freak!" Despite the intense pain in my shoulder, I had to grin at the fact that _he_ was calling Buggy a freak. Kind of like the pot calling the kettle black.

Buggy launched his fist at Luffy, a knife pointed straight at his head. Luffy, don't ask me how he did it, caught the knife between his teeth, and snapped the steel. "Buggy..." he said. "Once I get out of here, I swear I'll kick your ass!" He grinned at us. "Hey, Zoro! Run!" Tangerine looked like she was about to lose her cool completely. Zoro nodded. He straightened himself up, then ran towards Luffy, with me not far behind.

Buggy tried to intercept us, but Zoro cut him in half. We both jumped between the gap, and kept running. Zoro ducked under the cannon, and started pushing up with all his might.

I ran up to Tangerine. "Hand me the matches!" I shouted.

Tangerine nodded shakily, and handed me the small box of matches.

Then, I lit the fuse. "Cover your ears, folks!" I shouted.

**BOOM!**

The Buggy Ball shot from the cannon, blasting the other end of the tavern to bits. The last thing I heard through the blast was Buggy's scream of terror.

"Whew." I said, as soon as we got out of there. "That was way too close for comfort." I leaned against a support pillar, jarring my shoulder again. I bit back a curse.

"No kidding..." Zoro wheezed. I looked at him. "By the way, are you sure you don't want me to give you a hand with that?" I said, pointing to the cage that Zoro was carrying. "I'm fine..." he said, before dropping the cage and collapsing. "Hunh?" he said as soon as he was down.

"Ummm..." I said, staring at the little dog that was just sitting there in front of a pet food shop. He wasn't moving. There was a serious expression in his eyes. I got the feeling he was watching our every move.

"Doggy!" Luffy said. He sounded like a little kid. He managed to move his cage up to the dog. He started poking it. "Leave him alone, Luffy." I said, kneeling down to prop Zoro up against one of the building supports.

"Maybe it's dead." Luffy said, poking it between the eyes. The dog didn't like that it would seem. He bit Luffy's face. The next few seconds were a blur.

Luffy screamed, "Let go of me, you stupid dog! GET OFF, GET OFF GET OFF!"

"LUFFY, STOP FOOLING AROUND!" Zoro shouted.

I thought one of my ribs were going to crack, I was laughing so hard.

"Look at you people..." Tangerine said, appearing out of nowhere. "You know, the middle of the street isn't the greatest hiding place." I glared at her. "Who asked you?" Tangerine frowned at me, then tossed a key onto the ground. "You guys got me out of a sticky situation back there, so now we're even."

"Wow! You stole that for me?! Thanks!" Luffy said, grinning like an idiot.

I turned to Luffy. "So, what's the story here?" I asked, with an eyebrow raised. "And who's she?" Luffy grinned. "That's Nami! She's our new navigator." I grinned. "Oh, really? Sweet!" I held my hand out to her. "I'm Koe!"

Nami shook my hand, then said, "I'm not your navigator! I said we were even!" I cocked my head. "Why not? We need a navigator, and it would be fun to have another girl along."

"She's our navigator." Luffy said, making a move to grab the key. Then, the dog, who hadn't moved since he bit Luffy, stepped up and swallowed the key. We all froze when we heard the ominous gulp. _Uh-oh... This is a problem..._ I thought.

Luffy grabbed the dog by the neck and started shaking him up and down. "Spit it out! THAT'S NOT FOOD!GIVE IT BACK!GIVE IT GIVE IT GIVE IT!"

I facepalmed. "Luffy, leave him be, he's already swallowed it."

"Hey, you dern whipper snappers!" someone shouted. "Quit picking on poor Chouchou! Put him down!" There was an old man running up to us. His white hair looked like a poodle's. He had makeshift armor on over his hawaiian shirt and shorts. He stopped when he saw Zoro. "My..." he said. "That's a serious injury you have there..."

"Who're you, Ossan?" I asked.

"Ossan?!" he said. "Why, I'm the mayor of this town!" He knelt down and said, "You should see a doctor, son." Zoro just shrugged. "I just need to sleep it off." he said. The mayor nodded. "Okay, my house is just over there." he pointed across the way. "You can rest up there."

I got up. "I'll go too. I'll see what I can do for him."

Together, the mayor and I helped Zoro into the house across the road. When we got him settled down, the mayor left to talk to Luffy and Nami.

"You know, I don't need any help." Zoro said to me as I pulled up a chair. I smacked him upside the head. "Shut up!" I said. "I might not be a doctor, but I can still stop you from bleeding out. Not to mention the fact that I can ease the pain." I took the water from my water bottle and placed it over Zoro's wound. We stayed that way for a few minutes, then Zoro fell asleep.

I stared at him. He looked so peaceful. "Sheesh..." I muttered. "And after all of his complaining, he just falls asleep anyway..." I grinned. Another weapon for me to use later.

My eyelids felt heavy. I knew I could do this and sleep at the same time, so I closed my eyes and dozed off...

**That's chapter 10! Actually, that's about half of it... The rest of it is the rest of their adventures on this island... **

**Koe: Don't you think it's long enough?**

**FM13: Why do you think I'm breaking it up? One chapter is going to be three!**

**Zoro: (snorts and opens an eye) Wha- Is it morning already?**

**Koe: Yes, but that's not gonna stop you from falling asleep again. **

**Zoro: (looks around) Where's Luffy?**

**FM13: He's raiding the fridge.**

**Zoro: You got any Grog?**

**FM13: (smacks him over the head) No! Just go back to sleep. I'll wake you up when I feel you should be woken... (facepalms) Jeez... didn't even wait for me to finish... **

**Zoro: (snores)**

**Koe: Anyway, please review! XD**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey! I said earlier today that I'd try to post a second chapter today. So, as promised, here it is! Koe!**

**Koe: (jumps) Aack! What?!**

**FM13: Stop reading my comic books and say the disclaimer!**

**Koe: Fine... You really are picky today, you know that?**

**Nami: She's not half as bad as that Luffy... Never leaves me alone...**

**Koe: But you're our navigator!**

**Nami: I haven't agreed to that yet!**

**FM13: *ahem* Back to the issue at hand here...**

**Koe: Sorry. Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of the characters. She only owns her OCs. **

**Luffy: Hey, Koe! There you are! There's a great show coming on! (grabs Koe by the wrist and drags her away)**

**FM13: (sighs) Well... Thanks to Molly Grace 16 and Chocolatluver4ever for reviewing! And thanks to ReiStriker for favoriting!**

**Enjoy chapter 11 from all of us!**

Chapter 11

Now, I've been woken up in some pretty weird ways, but having an entire house collapse on you is not one I recommend, no matter how deep a sleeper you are. When I opened my eyes, Zoro was standing over me. "You alright?" he asked. I nodded. "Urrg..." I groaned. "That's one hell of a way to get woken up." Zoro pushed a piece of rubble off us.

The light was blinding. When I finally managed to take note of what was around me, I noticed a few things had changed. Luffy was out of the cage; an entire row of houses had been demolished; but, worst of all, the pet food shop was nothing but a pile of flaming rubble. When Luffy saw us, he said, "Hey! You guys are alive! Zoro, you have a good nap?"

Zoro nodded.

The mayor grabbed his spear. "I'm going to protect my town! After all, I man's gotta do what a man's gotta do!" Luffy grinned and said, "You bet!"The mayor ran off, cursing Buggy the clown.

"Well," I said, cracking my knuckles. "I guess we'd better go." Luffy grinned. "Yeah!" he said. "C'mon!"

He stretched out an arm and grabbed me by the waist, then dashed off. "Hey! Luffy!" I shouted.

When we got to the pub, the mayor was up in the air, getting strangled by Buggy. Luffy grabbed Buggy's hand. He grinned. "Buggy... I'm back to kick your ass!"

Zoro and Nami came running up behind us. "Geez..." Zoro said, gasping for breath.

Buggy shouted something about readying a buggy ball. "Luffy, we'd better get out of the way!" Zoro said, moving to the side of the road.

The buggy ball flew towards us. "Hey, Koe!" Luffy said. "You'd better back up a step!" He took a huge breath of air and said, "Gum-Gum Balloon!" He swelled so fast, he knocked me off my feet. He caught the buggy ball in his stomach, and sent it flying at Buggy. There was a deafening explosion. The tavern was destroyed.

"Idiot..." Zoro muttered. "Could've warned me..." Nami, on the other hand, looked absolutely freaked. "WHAT THE HELL KIND OF MONSTER ARE YOU?!" she screamed. I walked up to Luffy. "I think you freaked her out, bro."

Then, Buggy rose out of the rubble like the thing from the black lagoon. He had two of his crew in front of him. "Unreal..." Nami muttered. "Using his own men as a shield."

Buggy looked so angry he might have exploded at that moment. "How dare you try to flashily do me in?!" he hollered. A few feet away, a really weird looking dude pulled himself out of the wreckage. He had a fuzzy shirt and, get this, he had teddy bear ears! "Oww..." he grumbled. "What happened?" Then, he spotted Luffy. "AHH! IT'S THAT DAMN STRAW HAT!" he screeched. "Be careful, captain! This guy has devil fruit powers! He's a rubber person!" Buggy picked him up, and tossed him towards us. "Why didn't you say anything?!" he shouted. "I tried to!" Fuzzy said. "Get out of the way!" he shouted.

Luffy grinned. "Out of MY way, Fuzzy!" he said, delivering a hard roundhouse kick to his face. Fuzzy smacked into the wall of a nearby building.

Then, someone else rose out of the wreckage. He was just as weird as the rest of them. He looked like an acrobat. "May I engage them in combat?"

Buggy growled. "Fine. But make it a good show for everyone!"

The acrobat launched toward us. "I am Cabaji!" he said. "Captain Buggy's second mate." He pointed a sword at Luffy.

**Clang!** Zoro intercepted Cabaji's blow. "I'll clash swords with you." he said. Cabaji grinned.

"Arsonist technique!" he blew fire in Zoro's face. As Zoro staggered back, he kicked him in the side.

Zoro cried out in pain. Cabaji had hit his wound! "What's the matter?" he asked. "I didn't kick you that hard now did I?"

"Damn it..." Zoro grumbled. He charged. Cabaji started swinging his sword, slashing the stone. "Acrobat technique: Murder at the steam bath." A big cloud of dust formed. Zoro smirked. "Acrobat, my ass. That's just an ordinary dust cloud." Then, a pointed boot caught him in the side again. "ARRGH!" Zoro shouted.

Cabaji landed beside him. "What kind of man screams like a woman?"

I felt my blood pressure rise a few units. What a sexist...

Zoro got up, and said, "You having fun poking at my wound? Well, here!" He stuck his sword in his wound, and slashed the flesh.

"Ouchie!" Luffy said from beside me.

I frowned. "Damn it, Zoro." I grumbled. "More work for me to do..."

"Is that enough of a handicap for you?" Zoro growled. 'Well, here!"

Cabaji did the most incredible thing I'd seen him do yet. Okay, I know I shouldn't have been impressed by an enemy's attack, but I dare you not to be impressed by someone who can ride a unicycle up a building into the sky. He dropped down, and just barely missed Zoro.

"Hey, Zoro!" I called. "You'd better hurry! You'll bleed out!" Zoro whipped around. "Shut up, Koe!" he snapped. "I can take care of myself!" He ducked to avoid Cabaji's next strike. Cabaji smirked. "What a cute couple." he said. "But can you two sweethearts argue another time? If you survive that is..." Zoro looked about as pissed as I was. "Shut UP!" we both shouted. "All right, bring it on!" As Cabaji attacked, his sword drawn, Zoro brandished his three swords and shouted, "Oni... Giri!"

I cocked my head. "Rice ball?" I said, biting back a chuckle. Wait a minute... He meant demon cut... Good pun though. It hit Cabaji square in the chest.

As he fell, he sputtered, "I can't believe the buggy pirates would be defeated by petty thieves."

"We aren't petty thieves." Zoro said. Then, he collapsed. "We're pirates!"

**Zoro: (snores) **

**Koe: Has he been sleeping this whole time?**

**FM13: I wouldn't be surprised if he has... **

**Luffy: Hey, Frostsuki... There's no more meat in your fridge...**

**FM13: Did you eat every scrap of meat I own?! And what's with these dumb nicknames?!**

**Luffy: I thought it would be funny... Your pen name is frostmoon13, tsuki is moon, so Frostsuki!**

**FM13: In that case... just stick with Frosty...**

**Luffy: Yay! **

**Koe: (sweatdrops) Okay, then... Please review, otherwise, (glances at Zoro) I don't think Moss-ball here will ever wake up...**

**Zoro: (snores)**


	12. Chapter 12

**Hello again all you ****_Voice _****readers! Here is chapter 12, the final chapter of the Buggy the Clown conflict! Hooray! **

**Koe: Do I finally get to fight?**

**FM13: Why don't you just read it? **

**Koe: Oh, yeah... By the way... (evil aura) What 'cute couple...?' **

**FM13: (chuckles nervously) I don't own one piece or any of it's characters! I only own my OCs!**

**Zoro: (snorts and opens an eye) **

**Koe: Oh, Moss-ball woke up... Thanks for the reviews!**

Chapter 12

I sighed, and walked up to Zoro. "You're gonna cause me a lot of trouble, aren't you?" I smirked. Zoro glared at me. "What cute couple?" he growled. "Hey!" I said, poking him in the back. "You're acting as if it was my fault!" Luffy just laughed.

Then, I heard a shuffling behind me. Fuzzy was up again. "Captain!" he shouted. "Let me handle the girl! I can easily beat _her_!"

Buggy eyed Fuzzy, then said, "Fine. This shouldn't take you long." I felt one of the veins on my forehead throb. I was sick and tired of people calling me weak. I turned to Fuzzy. "Fine, I'll take you on." I grinned. "I'll knock that stupid costume right off your head!"

I think I must have plucked a nerve there, because Fuzzy grew shark teeth. "COSTUME?!" he vented. "This is my hair!" I stifled a laugh. Seriously? That was just sad. I took up a fighting stance. "C'mon, Fuzzy!" I said. "Come at me with everything you've got."

Fuzzy jumped up, and called, "Come to me! Ritchie!" More tavern rubble started to shake, and out sprang a huge lion. He stopped in front of me and roared so loud it parted my hair. A string of saliva hit me in the forehead and got stuck in my bangs. "Eugh! Gross..." I said, wiping my forehead with the back of my hand. "Hey, you!" I said to Fuzzy. "When was the last time you brushed your lion's teeth, eh?" Fuzzy stopped. He pulled out a notepad. "You mean I need to brush his teeth? How many times a day?"

"Well," I said, "Tooth care is essential. It not only keeps your pets happy, but it saves you a whole whack load of money in the long run, you know, because there won't be as many dental problems like peridontal disease and all that." Fuzzy nodded, scratching it down in his notebook. Then, he threw it up in the air, shouting. "I don't have time for this!"

I shrugged. Oh well. It was fun while it lasted.

The lion made a wild slash at my chest. I jumped back, just barely dodging it. I was going to counterattack right away, but I tripped over a rock and staggered backwards. Fuzzy hopped on his lion and said, "I am captain Buggy's first mate, Mohji the beast tamer! Get the weakling, Ritchie!"

This time, Ritchie caught me in the shoulder with one of his huge claws. You can guess which shoulder it was. I bit back a cry of pain. My shoulder felt like it was on fire. I flew across the road, and crashed into a stone fountain, hard. "Unhhh..." I groaned. Great. First my shoulder, now my head. The part of my mind that was still working properly said, _Wait for it, wait for it..._

"Koe!" Luffy shouted. "You okay?" Well, of course not. At least he wasn't butting into my fight.

Ritchie charged again. I rolled under his strike. Ritchie's huge paw smashed the fountain to bits, sending a spray of water up into the air.

Shuddering and gasping for breath, I stopped next to Zoro, who was asleep. Like seriously out cold. Ritchie charged again. If he hit me, he would hit Zoro too. "Damn it, Zoro..." I muttered. "You're just dead-set on causing me trouble." I groaned. I grabbed him under the armpits, and dragged him over to a building, propping him up against the wall. "And stay there..." I grumbled.

Then, I stood up, stretched, and glared at Mohji. "Did I give you enough of a head start, Fuzzy?" I said, licking some blood off my lip. "I'll prove to you that you're no match for me." I saw a vein in Mohji's forehead throb. "I'm no match for _you_?!" he shrieked. "You haven't landed a single blow against either of us yet!"

I smiled. "Then put your lion where your mouth is."

Mohji looked so angry, I thought he was going to mutate. "Get her, Ritchie! She doesn't have a devil fruit power! We can kill her with one blow!"

Then, I heard, "Ground-hugging chop-chop cannon!" Buggy's hand shot towards me.

"Mohji!" he shouted. "I'll hold the brat! You finish her off!" "Damn!" I muttered. If Buggy got ahold of me, I would be toast.

Luffy stepped up, and stomped on Buggy's hand. "Keep your mits out of Koe's fight." he smirked.

Buggy cried out in pain. "How dare you step on my hand, you damn straw hat brat!"

I snorted at the perfect rhyme.

I grinned, and ducked under the lion's next strike. "Thanks Luffy. I owe you one."

I ran towards the destroyed fountain, the lion and lion tamer not far behind me. I turned to face them. "Now, how about I show you just how wrong you were about me." I said.

I called on the fountain water, and it responded. "Aqua grab." I made a grabbing motion with my hand and the water imitated my movements. A huge watery vice caught the lion around the neck.

"I'm not about to be taken out by some weak lion!" I said, grinning. I had fought tigers on mount Corvo that were twice this kitten's size.

"Whaat?!" Mohji shouted. "You- you have-"

"Yep!" I said, smiling sweetly. "You're staring down a water controller. I ate the water-water fruit: paramythia model. So, time to pay for calling me weak!"

I raised my right hand, and the water lifted the lion up into the air. "Ultramarine... Pound!" I made a pounding motion with my hand. The huge fist of water slammed the lion into the stone street, head first. The rock cracked from the sheer force.

"You!" Mohji shouted. "How dare you do that to my Ritchie?!" He pulled out a whip, and charged at me. I grinned. I focused, and little droplets rose. None of them were bigger than a centimetre across. "Azure needles!" I placed my right hand over my left, and flicked my fingers, brushing against my palm. Each time my finger skimmed my palm, one of the droplets shot towards Fuzzy. Fifteen of them hit Mohji square in the chest. He coughed.

"H-how?" he said. "Those droplets are like bullets!" I charged, my fist clenched. I rotated my hand, and a whip of water grabbed Fuzzy by the shirt, and I punched him, square in the nose.

He collapsed, blood pouring from his nose and his mouth.

I sighed. Then, I grinned, clapping my forearm against my hand. "That's what you get for underestimating me." Then, I collapsed too.

Luffy walked up to me. "That was awesome! Shishishi!"

I grinned. "You know it. I'm gonna take a nap, okay?" He grinned. "Sure!" he said. "Just leave the rest to me!"

When I regained consciousness, I noticed three things right away. One: the fight between Luffy and Big-Nose was finished; Two: Luffy had moved me out of the way of the fight, up against the same building I had propped Zoro up against; and three: Zoro was leaning up against me, shoulder to shoulder, still snoring away. _Damn it... This is awkward. _I was freaking out on the inside.

"Hey, Luffy." I called. Luffy's head spun around first, before turning to face me.

He grinned. "Hey, Koe, you're awake!" he said. "We need to hit the road. Oh, by the way, Nami's our new navigator! She agreed to join the crew!" I grinned. Now I didn't have to ask the ocean where the nearest islands were, and put everyone in danger. I shifted my weight, which was painful, since Zoro was leaning against my right shoulder, damn him. I patted his head a few times. "Hey, wake up Moss-ball, we're off again."

Zoro stirred a bit, then sat up, yawned, and then caught sight of the position we were in. "What the hell?!" he shouted. "What's the big idea here? Why were you leaning up against me?!" I poked him in the middle of his forehead. "You've got it backwards." I said. "You were leaning against me. Now get up already. Nami's joined the crew, so we're off."

As we started off, Luffy carrying Zoro since he was still too weak to walk, we passed an unconscious guy in the road. "Wait a minute..." I said. "What happened to the old mayor guy?" Luffy grinned. "He was in the way, so I knocked him out." I smacked him upside the head. "I'm sure you could have found a more humane way to deal with the situation!"

Nami sighed. "That's what I said..." she groaned.

I perked up. "Guys, there's something coming." I said. It sounded like a stampede. Soon, a bunch of people came running up. "Who are you people? What happened to our mayor?!"

"It must have been those pirates! Damn them!"

I opened my mouth to explain, but Luffy beat me to it. "No," he said. "I kicked that old man's ass."

Oh, boy... Things were about to get interesting.

All the townspeople glared at us. "What possessed you to do that to our beloved mayor?!"

"Are you with those pirates?!"

I was about to explain that we weren't working under Buggy, when my idiot brother had to open his mouth again. "We're pirates." he said simply. Zoro and I started laughing. Oh, well, there was nothing else to do. What was done was done.

Of course the townspeople started chasing us. Luffy hauled Zoro over his shoulder, grabbed my hand, and shouted, "RUN!" He half led, half dragged me down the road, Nami not too far behind, hauling her treasure bags behind her.

It was almost like when we were kids, except Ace wasn't with us, and the angry mob chasing us was about five times larger than the ones that used to chase us. Most of them didn't even have real weapons on them. I had never seen a crowd with brooms and mops look so bloodthirsty.

"We're turning here!" Luffy said. He turned so sharply to the right that he pulled me off my feet. Not exactly the best thing for my shoulder. What the hell was up with that today? I swear, Zoro and Luffy were going to get a beating once we got away!

"Arf!" I looked down, and saw that dog that had bitten Luffy. Nami's eyes grew wide. "Chouchou?" she said, in disbelief. "Doggy?" Luffy said. Chouchou started barking at the angry mob, snapping at their ankles. "Thanks Doggy!" Luffy shouted as we made our escape.

When we got down to the pier, we noticed a larger boat with a black sail. "Wow..." Luffy said, gaping at Nami. "Is that your boat?" Nami smirked. "Yeah." she said. "I stole it from some dumb pirates a while back." I thought about that for a moment. Dumb pirates... That kind of rang a little bell somewhere in the back of my mind.

"Now, that's not very nice..." someone said. Sure enough, hiding on the black sailed boat were the three idiots Zoro and I rescued, or something like that.

Luffy looked at Nami. "You know these guys?" Nami grinned sheepishly. "S-sort of..."

"What do you mean, 'sort of'?" the middle one said. "We're bound together by fate. It's time you learned what happens when you steal people's stuff. Of course we'll have to punish your friends, too."

I just stared at them. These pirates were idiots. They didn't even notice me and Zoro. The middle one patted Zoro on the head. "Hey, wake up, you." he said. "Time for your medicine!"

Should I, or shouldn't I tell them what a big mistake they made...? Nah.

Zoro lifted his head and said, "**Hunh?**"

The three pirates screamed and started crying out. Luffy and Nami just stared. I thought one of my ribs had already cracked, I was laughing so hard.

I untied the ropes, and we started floating away from the island. "Everything's ready to go, Luffy." I said, sitting back. "Yosh!" Luffy said. Then, I heard a voice call out from the shore. "HEY! YOUNG ONES!" I turned and saw the old mayor guy. He was crying. "THANKS!" he shouted. "Thanks so much!" Luffy, Zoro, Nami, and I grinned. "TAKE IT EASY, MAYOR GUY!"

Our small boats drifted along. I was using my devil fruit power to keep our boats from drifting too far apart. It was all quiet, until Nami started making a ruckus. "Luffy! Did you leave that bag at the pier?!" she shrieked. Luffy nodded. "Yup! They're gonna need every last bit of it to rebuild their town."

"But that was _my_ treasure!" Nami shouted, grabbing Luffy's head and stuffing it under water. Luffy struggled to push his head back up. "Stop! I can't swim!" he shouted.

"That's the whole point!"

Zoro and I stared at the two of them fighting, then we looked at each other. We both started laughing.

When we finally managed to catch our breath, Zoro grinned at no one in particular, and said, "Well, for better or for worse, looks like we have a navigator in the crew."

**There! Koe got to fight! You happy now, Koe?**

**Koe: Yep! Seriously though... That beast tamer guy was all talk. **

**Luffy: Tmsh ishh delshhushhh.**

**Nami: (smacks Luffy over the head) Luffy! Don't talk with your mouth full! Honestly!**

**Koe: Don't bother, Nami, he'll never learn. **

**Luffy: Pleeshhh Wevewww... **

**Koe: For those who didn't understand that, he said 'Please Review!' **


	13. Chapter 13

**Hello everyone! So, now that the Strawhats have a navigator, maybe they'll get to where they want to be! **

**Koe: I wouldn't count on it. **

**Nami: What did you say?!**

**FM13: You two... Get along. Nami, Koe already fights with Zoro, so please try to get along. Otherwise, this story will be chaos. **

**Koe: Alright... Truce?**

**Nami: Truce. **

**Koe: Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece. She only owns her OCs and this fic. **

**FM13: Thanks to those who reviewed and favorited!**

Chapter 13

It was just another beautiful day. The sea was calm, the gulls were screaming, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and - "I'm hungry..." I felt a vein on my temple throb. "Stop complaining, Luffy." I said. "Besides, you're stuffing your face already."

Nami, who had the larger boat all to herself, said, "There's no way we can make it to the Grand Line like this." Luffy nodded, taking a bite out of his apple. "Right. We need more meat. Eating fruit every day is for the birds." Zoro, who was leaning against the left side of the boat, smiled at that. "We also need some booze." An apple hit him square in the forehead. I chuckled.

"Shut up, you morons!" Nami shouted. "We'll need more that meat and alcohol to survive out here."

"You mean we need a ship." I said. Nami nodded. "We need to stop and get a ship on the next island."

"Yosh!" Luffy said. "Let's go get some meat!" "And some booze." Zoro added. "Shut up!" Nami shouted. I laughed so hard my sides hurt.

I raised my eyebrows. "Oh, yeah!" I turned to Luffy. "We need a compass, too!" Another apple hit me in the back of the head, courtesy of Nami. "YOU GUYS DON'T EVEN HAVE A COMPASS?!"

A few hours later, we made it to the next island. It was a nice little island, with a sandy shore surrounded by sheer cliffs. The bay we docked in was crescent moon shaped.

I took a deep breath of air. "Ahh... This is so-" I stopped, and ducked to avoid something that would have hit me if I'd stayed put. "What the-"

"What's going on?" Luffy shouted.

Then, pirate flags rose out of the bushes. There were at least fifty of them. Someone shouted, "Ha! You people stay off this island! It is the territory of pirates under the notorious... Captain Usopp!"

I paused. Usopp? Where had I heard that name before?

Standing on the ledge was a skinny guy, about Luffy's age. He had really curly black hair, long limbs, and a very long nose. He wore brown overalls, a grey t-shirt, and a brown bandana tied around his head. There was a pair of goggles over his eyes.

"Beware!" Usopp shouted. "My fleet of eight thousand men will massacre you!" "Eight thousand?!" Luffy shouted. I rolled my eyes. "No kidding, that's-"

"That's so awesome!" Go figure... That simpleton.

Nami grinned. "Do you seriously expect us to believe that?" she said slyly. Usopp clapped his hands over his head. "Oh no!" he shouted. "She knows!" Nami smirked. "I do now."

Usopp stood up a little taller, and said, "Okay, I might've stretched it a little, but I have a great many men under my control!"

I took a look around. The flags were moving in a few different patterns, and judging by the size of the bushes... "Let me guess..." I said, smirking at the black haired boy. "Three little kids?"

Right away, three little boys, about nine years old, appeared over the bushes.

One of them was a full head taller than his friends, with shaggy purple hair that covered his eyes. He wore an orange vest, purple pants, and an orange toque.

The second one had green hair shaped like a bell pepper. He wore a dark green t-shirt.

The last one was a short kid with blond hair that stuck up at the top in a kind of funnel. He wore glasses, a brown vest, and blue shorts.

They all looked at me with absolute terror. "THEY KNOW!" They screamed. They turned and ran, crying. Usopp shouted after them, "Hey, guys! Where are you going?!"

Nami stepped forward, bent down, and picked up a small sphere. "A pirate using a slingshot, eh?" she said.

Usopp raised his slingshot. "That's right. You've seen me use this thing. You know I could rival anyone with a pistol!" He pointed it a us, a slingshot ball loaded and ready to fire.

I looked at Luffy. He smirked. Oh, boy. I knew what he was thinking. Good going.

Luffy put his hand on his straw hat, looked up and said, "Now that you've drawn your pistol, are you willing... To use it?" Usopp flinched. Luffy grinned and continued in the same solemn voice, "It isn't safe to point guns. Are you willing to risk your life?"

Zoro stepped up, smirking. He shifted his white sword in it's scabbard. "I assure you, we're real pirates." he said. "If you want to challenge us, then shoot." I stepped up beside him. I fixed Usopp with the most icy stare I could."Every one of us are hardened fighters." I said. "Consider your next move very carefully."

Usopp trembled, and let go of his slingshot. He slumped to the ground. "Real pirates are so much better at threats 'cause they can actually back him up... That's so cool!"

Luffy, Zoro, and I looked at each other. Then, we all burst out laughing. "You got that from Shanks, didn't you?" I said to Luffy, wiping a tear from my eye. Luffy nodded. "I stole that!" he said to Usopp. "I got that from my friend, Red-Haired Shanks!"

Usopp's eyes widened. "You know red-haired Shanks?"

I smiled. "Yep. We know your dad too. His name is Yasopp, right?"

Usopp's expression shifted from confusion to pure joy in a split second. He leaned too far over the cliff and fell - well, rolled is probably a better word - down the cliff face, landing with a thud at Luffy's feet.

"Yeah..." he said. "My old man's name is Yasopp. But, how on earth do you know him?"

I grinned. "Maybe we should discuss this somewhere else. Also," I jabbed my thumb at Luffy. "He could probably explain better than me."

A few minutes later, we were sitting in a restaurant, eating and talking. "We knew Yasopp when we were little kids." Luffy said. "He was a member of Shanks' crew." Usopp looked so happy about that. He told us he was proud of his father for living a life of adventure. "But I'm surprised you remembered my name." he said. "Dad must have told you a whole lot about me."

I chuckled. "I couldn't speak your language when we knew him, but even I could clue in that he was talking about his son."

"Yeah," Luffy said, taking a big bite of meat. "I think I heard enough about you to make my ears bleed."

"Hey, Usopp, maybe you can help us." Nami said. "We need to find a place to get a ship. Do you know of any?" Usopp looked around for a second, then said, "Nope, I can't think of anyone who could help you..."

Zoro looked out the window, and said, "What about that huge mansion over there?"

Usopp's reaction surprised me. "Stay away from there!" he shouted. Then, he said, "Wow, look at the time! I just remembered I have something really important I have to do! You guys just enjoy your meal. Everyone knows me here, it'll be fine!" Then, he dashed off.

"Wow." I said, leaning out of the booth, staring at Usopp's retreating form. "You'd think we just said something that scared him..." Zoro shrugged and took another swig of his drink. "Leave him be, Koe. He's just jumpy." I shrugged. "Okay, then..." I took a big bite out of my salad.

We had been eating for maybe five minutes, when the door swung open and three kids shouted, "The Usopp pirates have arrived!"

For the second time that day, I looked out from our booth. Standing at the door were those kids.

They stomped over to us, pointed wooden swords at us - the short one pointed his at my nose - and shouted, "Fess up, you filthy pirates! What have you done with our captain?!"

Luffy patted his stomach. "Man! That meat tasted so good!"

The kids stared at us wide eyed. "W-what meat?" said the pepper head.

I smirked. "You're right, Luffy. There wasn't much of it, but it was marinated to perfection."

"Marinated?!" The tall one squeaked. "Not much of it?!" "These pirates are cannibals!" said the short one.

Zoro gave the kids his most demonic stare. "If you're looking for your captain..." He smirked evilly. "**We ate him!**"

The kids clutched each other and screamed, "AAH! CANNIBALS!"

Nami banged her fist against the table. "Why are you looking at me?!" she shouted, as the rest of us almost killed ourselves laughing.

"Wow, you guys really gave us a scare there." said the pepper head, who had - ironically enough - introduced himself as Pepper. "Since when have you heard of pirates eating their victims?" I asked, scratching my head. "Where I come from, it was ugly old witch hags that ate their victims."

"I told you!" The tall one, Carrot, said, flailing his arms around.

"So where did Usopp get to anyway?" Nami asked. Onion, the short one, pointed to the mansion out the window. "He always goes there this time of day. He goes to lie."

"That's terrible!" Nami said. "Not really." Onion said. "Kaya, the girl who lives there has been in a horrible depression ever since her parents died two years ago. The captain goes and tells her stories to cheer her up."

Luffy stood up. "Great! I think we should ask her for a ship after all!"

Zoro bonked him on the head with his white sword. "We don't make her feel better, Usopp does."

I got up. "I'd like to talk to Usopp again." I said. "I wanted to see how good a marksman he really is. Can you take us to him?" The three kids nodded. "Follow us!"

"Well, this is the place." Pepper said. We were at the gates of the mansion, which was a lot bigger than I'd realised. "How do we get in?" Luffy asked. "Well, the captain normally uses a secret entrance. There are usually guards at the gates." Onion said.

Luffy grinned. _Uh-oh..._ I thought. I knew what he was up to. He grabbed the top of the fence, and pulled back."Pardon the intrusion!"

"Oh no! Luffy, no!" We all grabbed onto him, trying to keep him on the ground. "ROCKET!" We all flew sky high.

I hit a cement walkway with a sickening thud. I was about to move, when something landed on me. Hard. I coughed, painfully conscious of the loud cracking noise. I nearly blacked out.

"Oh, no!" Zoro got up, grabbed my shoulders, and propped me up against the side of the building. "I'm so sorry! Are you alright?!"

I opened my mouth to say I would be fine, but instead, something warm and wet filled my mouth, and I coughed. Blood splattered all over my shirt. "I think I'm alright..." I managed. I tried to stand up, but pain exploded in my chest. Half blinded, I sank back to the ground.

It hurt to move, it hurt to breathe... Just my luck that had happened.

Luffy got up and dusted himself off. "Phew! That went well!"

"THE HELL IT DID!" Nami and Zoro shouted together. I chuckled, then coughed up more blood.

Luffy turned around and noticed me. "Oh man!" he shouted. "What happened to you?!" He turned to Zoro. "What did you do to her, Zoro?! Did you land on her?!" "It was your fault!" Zoro snapped. "I didn't fall on her by choice!"

I gently prodded my side. I flinched as my fingers ran over the side of my chest.

"Are you alright, Koe?" Zoro asked for the second time. I nodded half-heartedly. "I think I might've broken a few of my ribs..." I groaned. "No, I'm certain of it..."

"Goodness!" said a girl leaning out one of the top windows. "Are you alright?" Usopp, who was sitting in the tree, said, "Don't worry, Kaya. These people are just some fanatics who want to join the Usopp pirates."

Luffy looked up. "No, I came to see you." he said. "I was wondering if you could help us get a-"

"You there!" someone said in a clear, tone, ringing with authority. Walking towards us was the weirdest guy I'd ever seen in my life. That, by the way, is saying something. He had black hair, slicked down. His eyes were small and black. He wore a round pair of glasses, and a fancy looking suit with... Poop designs? He was looking at us like we were sewer rats that had crawled from the pipes. "Stop causing trouble and leave this place immediately!" he said.

Usopp glared at him. The girl, Kaya, leaned out of her window. "Klahadore!" she said. "Please take these people into the house! That girl needs medical attention!"

The butler guy, Klahadore - seriously, what kind of name is Klahadore? It's worse than 'Garp' -, fixed his cold gaze on me, eyeing the blood on my face and shirt. Then, he looked at the craters in the ground, and the rest of the group. He shook his head. "No. I will not allow riff-raff like these people to enter your house, miss Kaya."

Usopp jumped down from his perch in the tree. "Hey! Butler! The least you could do is help them!"

Klahadore, who I decided to call Mr. Poop, shook his head. "You, Usopp, are the worst of the lot." he said. "Not only are you an incorrigible liar..." he paused for effect. "You cozy up to the lady of the house to steal her fortune." He ignored Usopp's furious glare. "Perhaps this is a trait you inherited from your father."

"N-now just a minute!" Usopp shouted. He looked absolutely furious, and extremely hurt.

Mr. Poop pushed up his glasses. "Did I say anything that wasn't true? You could just do what you do best and lie. You could say that your father is really a travelling salesman, or how you're not really related by blood-" He didn't even finish his sentence. Usopp had punched him in the nose, sending him flying. His glasses skipped along the ground and skidded to a halt beside me.

"I may be known to exaggerate from time to time!' He shouted. "But I refuse to be ashamed of my heritage! I'm the son of a pirate!"

Kaya looked like she was going to pass out. "Usopp! Please stop!" Usopp lowered his fist.

"No more violence! I can't take it!"

Mr. Poop sat up. "Get out! Never come back!"

Usopp stood up. "Fine. I get it." He turned, and ran away.

I sighed, then gasped. It hurt to do that. Jeez... I was just a wreck ...

"That goes for you too!" Mr. Poop said, glaring at us.

Carrot shot up like a rocket. "You can't just do that, you mean old butler!"

Pepper and Onion followed his example. "JERKFACE!" They shouted.

"JERKFACE!" Luffy shouted. Zoro clouted him over the head with his sword. "You don't have a bone to pick with him." he growled.

Luffy bent down, put his arms under my back and my knees, and lifted me off the ground.

I winced in pain. I tried to hold it in, but with at least two broken ribs, it was hard to do.

"C'mon." Luffy said. "Let's go." He walked past Mr. Poop, to the gate. Zoro, Nami, and the kids followed us off the property.

I tried to shift my position. "Luffy..." I managed. "Put me down... I can walk..." A fresh bolt of pain shot through my side again. I gasped, which only made the pain worse.

Luffy raised an eyebrow. "You're a pretty bad liar, you know." he said. "Besides, what kind of brother would I be if I let you get any more hurt than you already are? Ace would kill me." He said the last bit in an undertone.

I sighed and relaxed into Luffy's grip, my head resting against his arm. There was no arguing with him. Before I knew it, I fainted dead away.

**So, that's chapter 13!**

**Koe: Injured before a fight begins... That's a real pain.**

**Luffy: (snorts) Injuries are a real pain! Good one, Koe!**

**Zoro: You're accident-prone, Brat.**

**Koe: Whatever you say, Moss-ball. **

**Nami: Oh, not that again...**

**Usopp: It reminds me of the time I got into an argument with a fifty-foot giant-**

**FM13: Someone say the final words! **

**Usopp: When he tried to smack me over the head with his club, it was certainly a surprise! That didn't work though, because I-**

**Koe: Please review! XD**


	14. Chapter 14

**Hey everyone! Here's chapter 14!**

**I had to do a whole lot of editing for this one, because the fight scene was just too short. The last thing I want is Koe becoming like a Mary Sue. **

**Koe: What on earth is a Mary Sue?**

**FM13: It would take me too long to explain. **

**Koe: Explain while they read then. **

**FM13: Okay...**

**Koe: frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of the characters. She only owns her OCs. **

Chapter 14

When I woke up, I was back on our boat. I was lying on a thick blanket, my head resting on a roll of blankets. My shirt was covering me like a blanket. I tried to sit up, but pain flared in my chest. Carefully, I lowered myself back down. Instead, I lifted my arm, gingerly running my fingers along my side. My chest had been bandaged. I figured Nami had done this, since Luffy and Zoro were both idiots, and guys to top it off.

I groaned, and felt around for my book. My hand fell onto it's leather cover. I pulled it towards me. I opened it to the first page, and Shanks' note fell out, landing softly on my nose. I picked it up, and read it a few times. I tried to imagine Shanks' voice saying those words. I sighed. I missed Shanks as much as I missed Keith.

I relaxed and let my arm flop down on the deck boards beside me. My hand fell on a piece of paper. I lifted it up. Luffy had obviously written it. The script was thin and loopy like a five-year-old's handwriting, and it was all over the note.

Koe,

Zoro, Nami and I are going to help Usopp defend his village

from Captain Kuro, the butler guy, You'd never guess that

that guy's a pirate! They're planning to kill that rich girl.

You don't need to fight, though. We can handle it. You

just focus on healing fast. I would explain more, but I have

to buy some meat before the butcher leaves town!

- Luff

I sighed. "The idiot forgot to finish spelling his name..." I said in disbelief. Wait, Mr. Poop is a pirate?! And Luffy and the guys are going to fight them without me?! I'd like to see them try.

I hauled myself off the deck, ignoring the pain in my side, placed my book in my bag, slung my bag over my shoulder, and took a step. I had to bite back a scream. The pain in my side was excruciating.

You're probably wondering why the hell I wanted to fight in my condition. Truth be told, I just hate being a weak link. I didn't care how much pain I was in. I'm probably like this because I grew up with two older brothers. Can't rest when Luffy and Ace are your brothers.

I was just about to get out of the boat when I found myself face to face with a pirate with cat ears. We both stared at each other, blinked a few times, then said, "Uhhh..."

Cat ears was the first to recover. He turned around and called, "Hey! Captain Django! We searched the boats! We found treasure in the first boat, but there's a brat in the second one!"

Irritation coursed through my veins. Honestly, I know I'm not the tallest person you'll ever meet, but this is getting out of hand. Consequently, I bent down, supporting my weight with my hands, and kicked Cat ears in the face with both feet. He went flying, crashing into the sandy shore.

I winced in pain. _Okay, Koe, think this through. You have two broken ribs, you can't just kick people who deserve it, no matter how annoying it is. _

I took a look around. The first thing I noticed was, there was a large pirate ship docked next to our small boats. It was in pretty bad shape, with it's masthead and a part of the prow torn off.

Usopp and Nami were sitting on the ridge above the narrow pass leading to the shore. Usopp looked in pretty bad shape, his head battered and bleeding.

Zoro was fighting a large, fat cat eared pirate wearing a kotatsu on his back. There were eight clawlike wounds on his chest. He looked weak and ready to pass out.

Luffy was standing on the crest of the hill, facing Mr. Poop, or Captain Kuro.

He was wearing these fuzzy black gloves, with long sword blades on each finger. Weirdest weapon I've ever seen...

Zoro slashed through the kotatsu cat, who cracked the ground when he fell. He tossed his swords in the air, catching them in their scabbards. When he caught sight of me, his face paled. I grinned and waved, even though it made me feel sick.

Zoro stalked up to me. The look in his eyes was murderous. "What are you doing out here?" he growled.

I shrugged. "I came to join the fight. Why else would I be out here?" Zoro looked extremely annoyed. "You have two broken ribs! You shouldn't be walking, let alone joining the fight!"

We stopped as a shadow loomed over us. Standing over us was the largest pirate I've seen yet! He was at least ten feet tall, with a huge staff over his shoulder, and - of course - cat ears. He had a good-natured expression. "What a cute couple!" he bellowed happily. "That's what I like to see! Young ones who really care!"

Zoro hunched, his face red from trying to contain his fury. I made an I'm-going-to-barf sign.

"We're not a couple!" I called to the behemoth. "Are you looking for a fight?!"

A man who I hadn't noticed, the weirdest guy I'd ever seen, turned from his place on the crest of the hill, and said, "Oh! Nyazeth!" he shouted. "Destroy that pirate hunter!"

Zoro grunted. "Damn it..." he muttered. "So much for helping Usopp..."

I pushed him aside. "Go help Usopp." I said. "I'll handle this guy."

The look Zoro gave me said, "Oh, no you're not".

I grinned, reeled a bit, and said, "Trust me. I can handle him. If I get myself killed, you can gloat all you like."

Zoro didn't look too happy about the idea, but he nodded and turned away, running up to Usopp and Nami.

I turned to the behemoth cat. "Okay big guy..." I said, stretching, and wincing in pain. "Let's get started. I won't let you murder a sick girl."

Behemoth cat threw back his head and laughed. "You? Fight me? You're funny, girly!" I snarled at him. "Hurry up already..." I muttered. "I need to help my friends."

Behemoth charged me, grabbing the staff off his back. "My name is Nyazeth! Final card of the black cat pirates!" I grinned. "I'm Koe. Second mate and log keeper of the Strawhat pirates."

Nyazeth slammed his staff down right where I had been standing. It cracked the ground as I tumbled out of the way. Pain flared in my chest. Moving hurt like crazy. I steadied myself, called on the water, and said, "Azure needles." Small droplets formed around me, and with the flick of my fingers, zoomed towards the Nyazeth, piercing his left hand.

Nyazeth cried out in pain. "That hurts!" he shouted. He dropped his staff, and it clattered to the ground.

I stopped. What the hell? He was supposed to be a trump card, but he was a really big target, and weak to boot.

I raised an eyebrow. "You called yourself a trump card, but you're so weak." I said. "Is it possible you're a little out of practice?"

Nyazeth turned red. "You dare insult me?!" he shouted.

I nodded.

Nyazeth raised his staff. "DIE, THEN!" He slashed at me with his long, sharp claws.

I jumped out of the way, landed on an awkward angle, and nearly wilted. Damn it! In my condition, I wouldn't be able to handle anything physically. _Okay, Koe. Think, stay calm. You still have your devil fruit power. All you need to do is call on the water, and you can beat this oaf!_

I got on one knee, facing Behemoth.

He smiled as he advanced on me. "See what a mistake you made, girly? No one can defeat me!"

I raised my arm, called on the water, and simply said, "Cerulean Lance."

A huge spear of water erupted from the ocean, skewering Nyazeth through the solar plexus.

Nyazeth fell. "H-how..." he gasped. "Only two hits..."

I stood over him. "Hey, Behemoth." I said, wincing as I rubbed my side. "You have size, but nothing else. The moment you raised your spear, you had already lost to me. You left yourself wide open. If you want my advice, get yourself some armour."

I turned, and nearly collapsed. I put my hand on the cliff to keep from falling over. "Yes..." I panted, wiping the sweat off my forehead with the back of my hand. "I won..."

**Well, there you have it! Koe beats the daylights out of a guy almost twice her size. **

**Koe: Well, the guy was way out of practice. I probably would have lost if he was any good at what he did. Some second trump card...**

**Luffy: (raises his hand)**

**FM13: Yes?**

**Luffy: You forgot to thank them for the reviews...**

**Koe: Oops... Thanks for the reviews everyone! **

**Luffy: Please review! MEAT!**

**Koe: (sighs) Good grief... **


	15. Chapter 15

**Hello everyone! Chapter fifteen wraps up the fight with Captain Kuro!**

**Koe: Don't tell them everything...**

**FM13: I didn't...**

**Koe: By the way, where's everyone else?**

**FM13: No idea.**

**Koe: I heard something about a new comic book. **

**FM13: Go figure. **

**Koe: frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters (which is probably why they're so out of control...) She only owns her OCs. **

Chapter 12

I sighed in relief, ignoring the pain in my ribs. I shut my eyes. When I felt the world wasn't spinning, I opened them to access the damage. Usopp and Zoro were gone, and Nami was hauling her treasure bags towards the boat. I looked around for Luffy. He was standing on the crest of the hill.

Suddenly, there was a loud crash, and Kuro hit the ground at my feet. One of his gloves was broken, but I got the feeling it wouldn't make him any less dangerous. I grimaced. I didn't like the look of this guy. I tried to steady myself on my feet, and made my way towards Luffy. I was about halfway there, when Kuro stood up. "This is an insult..." he muttered. Some of his crew stared at him in horror. Kuro slumped over, his arms hanging.

"Captain!" the one closest to him shouted. "I don't think the situation is that dire!"

"Oh, no! He's using the out of the bag attack!"

_Out of the bag attack?_ I thought.

I didn't need to wonder what it was for long. Kuro started rocking from side to side, then vanished.

"Wha-" I began, then I gasped. Kuro's crew was getting sliced up at random. "What's he doing?!" I shouted. "He's killing his own men!"

Luffy gasped as four cuts appeared on his cheek. Kuro appeared behind him again.

"We need to run away!" one shouted. "He can't control himself when he's in that state! He'll kill us all!"

I thought, _He must be out of control because of the incredible speed... If I can slow him down a bit, maybe Luffy could land the finishing blow..._

I noticed Kuro starting his odd attack again. He swerved and disappeared. I saw the purple smoke, and the slashes in the rock. I called on the ocean. A whirlpool... I needed a whirlpool on land...

A layer of water flew from the sea and covered the ground. I just needed a thin whirlpool...

I lifted my arms. "Swirling trap..." I muttered.

The water responded to my command, becoming a swirling whirlpool. I saw the purple smoke get sucked in, but I wondered if I was catching anything else. "Luffy!" I called. "I'll try to slow him down! You deal the finishing bl-" I stopped and coughed up blood. I ended up on my back.

Pain exploded in my chest as I landed, and felt someone stand on my broken ribs... I was half blinded by the pain, but I managed to look up and see Kuro glaring at me. Then, he smiled. "Stupid girl..." he said, pushing up his broken glasses with the heel of his palm. "You should have stayed on your boat. Maybe I wouldn't have to kill you then."

He dug his heel into my left side. If there was one moment I wished I was deaf, it was then. The crunching noise was almost worse than the pain. Blood filled my mouth, and I cried out. I couldn't hear myself. My vision blurred. Then, the weight was lifted off my chest with the force of a cannon.

Kuro went flying, crashing into the cliff face, rock crumbling away from the impact.

Luffy was standing not too far away. I had never seen him looking so angry. He looked like he was about to tear Kuro's throat out. "You bastard!" he shouted. "How dare you do that to my sister?! She's a hundred times the person you are!" I felt the colour that had drained from my face rise to my ears. I had never seen Luffy this angry on my account.

I heard a crumbling sound. With great effort, I looked up. Kuro had cracked the cliff worse than I had originally thought. A huge chunk had fallen off the cliff face, and was falling towards me.

In a flash of red fabric, rubber, and pain, Luffy had run up, and whisked me out of there before the rock hit. I blinked. Luffy was carrying me bridal style again. Man, I was getting sick of this. He set me down on the grass. "Keep still." he said, in a slightly sterner tone. "I'll kick his ass all the way to Juper."

Despite the pain in my side, I raised my eyebrows and looked at him. "Where's Juper?" I asked. I was no good with maps, but I was better than him and I'd never heard of that place before.

Luffy pouted at me. "You know... The planet you told me about! The really big one!"

I just stared at him. "You mean _Jupiter_." I deadpanned. Honestly, that idiot brother of mine...

Luffy cracked his knuckles. "Yeah, there too." he said. He put his hand on his head, took off his straw hat, and placed it on my head. "Keep that safe for me, will ya?"

Painfully, I lifted my hand and placed it on his hat. "That, I can handle..." I said weakly.

Luffy smiled. "This'll be over in no time."

When I woke up, I nearly had a heart attack. Kuro crashed into the rock a few feet away. I blinked. I must have passed out at some point. Damn, I really need to work on that problem of mine.

Kuro stood up, but he didn't look too good. "All I want..." he muttered. "Is peace of mind..."

I looked the other way, and Luffy charged. "Gum-Gum... Pistol!" His fist slammed into Kuro's chest, and Kuro flew backwards, blood soaking his suit.

Luffy grinned. "There!" he shouted. "If you can abandon your dreams that easily, you have no right to call yourself a pirate!" He hunched over, panting and bleeding.

I smiled at Luffy. "Well what do you know..." I said. "You won..."

Luffy grinned at me. "Whew!" he said. "I feel awesome!" He knelt down beside me, and gently prodded my ribs. "Does this hurt?" he asked.

I tried not to, but when he poked me, I kind of lashed out and kicked him in the stomach. "You moron..." I growled. "Don't poke someone where you think it hurts then ask them if it does!"

There was a soft cough from behind us. We turned around to see Nami, Usopp, the kids, Zoro, and Kaya.

"Well..." Zoro said, frowning. "Didn't I tell you you'd get yourself hurt?"

I glared at him. "I beat that behemoth cat in less than five minutes!" I snapped. Then, I winced. Having broken ribs is a real pain in the ass... Well, a pain everywhere else too, but you get the idea.

Kaya ran up to us. "Goodness!" she said. "You're both in horrible condition! Please, let me help! I hope you'll rest at my place until you heal."

Luffy grinned, took his hat from my hand, and said, "Thanks!"

"Will that be all?" The store manager said, handing me a small bag.

I nodded. "Thanks. I've been looking for a store that sells pens and ink for ages."

It had been three days since the fight with Kuro and the black cat pirates. What was surprising to me was, even though I had gotten shot in the shoulder, slashed by a lion, and had not two, but three of my ribs; my wounds were healing a lot faster than normal. Maybe it was something to do with my devil fruit power... Maybe devil fruit users heal faster than normal people.

I walked out to the shore, swinging my bag back and forth. When I got to the crest of the hill, I turned around, taking one last look at Syrup village. I could tell why Usopp liked this place so much.

I turned when Kaya called, "Hey! Koe!" She and her guardian, Merry, were standing with Luffy and the rest of the crew in front of a small ship. "Wow!" I exclaimed, running towards the ship. "What a cool ship!" I wasn't lying; it wasn't too big, with a large sail, green sheep's flags, and a masthead in the shape of a sheep. I think the design was called a caravel.

"This," said Merry proudly. "Is a special design. It's an older model but she sails like a dream! Her name... Is the Going Merry!"

Luffy's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. "You're seriously giving us this awesome ship?!"

Kaya nodded. "It's the least we can do for you..."

Luffy, Zoro, Nami, and I climbed aboard. Everyone was smiling, looking around.

I stood by the rail, looking up at the hill, remembering the battle that had taken place only a few days before. I squinted. There was something like an overgrown green snowball rolling down the hill. Of course, Green snowballs don't shout 'Ouch!', 'yeowww!', and 'sh*tsh*tsh*t!'. I cringed as Usopp smacked against the side of our new ship.

"Hey, Usopp!" I called. "You alright?"

Usopp got up, looking dazed but unhurt. "I'm fine, Koe!" he said. "This is nothing for a future brave warrior of the sea like myself!"

I rolled my eyes. "Where are you off to in such a hurry?"

Usopp smiled. "I'm going off to sea!" he said. He blushed a little bit. He turned to Luffy. "I hope we see each other on the high seas!"

Zoro rolled his eyes. "What are you going on about? Just get on already."

Usopp stopped. "What? You want me to come?"

I grinned and shrugged, shouldering my bag. "You know, besides the constant lies, I don't see why not."

Luffy leaned against the rail, and said, "We're friends, aren't we?"

Usopp's eyes lit up. He jumped on board. "Yes!" he shouted, tears rolling down his cheeks. "I'm finally a pirate captain!"

"Idiot!" Luffy shouted. "I'm the captain!"

I chuckled. We already had five crew members... So much had happened already. I looked at the sky. "Well, Sabo..." I sighed. "We're really going strong now, eh?"

_Wait for me, Keith... I will find you..._

**So, now Usopp's a part of the crew!**

**Usopp: Yeah, I'm gonna be the greatest warrior of the sea the world has ever seen!**

**Koe: (snorts) **

**Usopp: What's wrong?!**

**Koe: Nothing, nothing... Welcome to the crew, Usopp.**

**Please review! XD**


	16. Chapter 16

**Hey, all you ****_Voice_**** readers!**

**So many people have followed, favourited, and reviewed! I'm so happy!**

**It might be a few days before the next chapter comes out, because I'll have no computer access for the weekend. **

**Koe: Good. That means I'll get to sleep in for a change. **

**FM13: Hey... But don't worry! It'll be less than a week before I update again!**

**Koe: (sighs...) Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece, or any of it's characters. She only owns her OCs. **

Chapter 16

"Aahhh..." I sighed, stretching in my chair. I was sitting in my small room on our new ship, the Going Merry. It felt nice to be able to sit quietly for a change.

I reached into my bag and pulled out my favourite grey quill, a bottle of ink - I decided on green ink, since I wanted to give the logbook a different look - , and my leather-bound logbook , and placed them on my desk. I opened my book to the first page, and carefully took out Shanks' note. I put it between the back cover and the last page so I wouldn't lose it.

I took a deep breath, savouring the moment. I was about to make the first mark on the log of our journey.

Suddenly, there was an almighty thud above me, the ceiling shook, and the desk rattled. The bottle of green ink was bumped off the desk, and I had to nearly bend over backwards to catch it before it hit the floor.

"What the hell is going on out there?" I muttered. I took a look at my desk, sighed, and said, "Well, I might as well write outside. It's a beautiful day out there." So I grabbed my quill, my ink bottle, and my book and went out on deck.

Of course, outside, it was utter chaos. Luffy was flat on his back, a black piece of fabric with the most awful drawing of a skull and crossbones I'd ever seen. I got the feeling the thud that nearly broke my ink bottle was him falling from the mast. Zoro was sleeping, of course. Nami was sitting on a deck chair, reading the newspaper. Usopp was laughing at Luffy, a paintbrush in his hand, and a huge paint splotch on his overalls.

"What are you guys doing?" I asked, sitting next to Zoro, who was farthest away from the paint chaos area, and opening my book over my knees.

Luffy grinned at me over his shoulder. "We're designing our pirate flag!"

I looked at the black cloth that Luffy was now holding up so I could get a full view. "That's not it, hopefully." Luffy must have been the one who drew that. There wasn't a straight line or good curve on there.

Usopp made a 'tut tut' sound. "Leave this to the master!" he said pompously. "I've been painting for the past fifty years!"

I rolled my eyes. _That guy is so full of baloney._

As Usopp spread a fresh piece of black cloth across the deck, Luffy hovering over his shoulder, I adjusted my book on my knees, unscrewed the cap on my ink bottle, and picked up my quill.

I sucked the tip of my quill, thinking. I needed a good opening sentence...

I looked up when Usopp shouted, "Done!" I sweatdropped. It was a good looking jolly roger, but there was one slight problem. "That looks a lot like you on there." I said, looking at my book again, while Luffy smacked Usopp upside the head.

I sighed. There was no way I was going to be able to write in the middle of this circus. I stuck my inkless quill in my mouth again.

_The adventures of the strawhat crew._ No, too simple.

_The outrageous adventures of a rubbery captain and crew. _No. That makes it sound like we're _all _made of rubber.

I went through a few of more of these ideas, none of them much better than the last.

I flinched when Luffy shouted, "Done!"

I looked up. Our jolly roger was at the top of the mast, flapping in the warm breeze. The same jolly roger was painted on the sail. It was a simple design, a plain skull and crossbones with a straw hat on it's head.

I smiled. "Not bad..." I said. I looked down at Zoro, who was still snoring away. "Jeez... Is he going to spend half his life sleeping?"

I took another look at our brand new pirate flag. "Finally..." I said, almost in a daze. "Perfect."

I dipped my quill in the ink bottle, hovered over the paper for a moment, and started to write.

_Romance Dawn_

_Being an account of the adventures of the Strawhat pirates, led by captain Monkey D. Luffy. Recorded by Koe: second mate/log keeper_

**BOOM!**

I was so startled, I nearly spilled my ink on my book. I looked up, annoyed.

The noise must have woken Zoro up, too. He sat up and growled, "What the hell are you guys doing?"

Naturally, it was Luffy and Usopp who were causing trouble. "Cannonfire practice!" Luffy grinned. They were firing at a small island of rock in the middle of the ocean.

I rolled my eyes, and continued to write. I stopped when I sensed someone was looking over my shoulder. "'The fight ended with the captain shouting 'If you can abandon your dreams that easily, you have no right to call yourself a pirate!'" Zoro read. "You wrote that much in already?"

I nodded. "Do you have any idea how long you've been asleep?"

Zoro shrugged. "By the way," I added. "I've left out a few chapters for Luffy's fight with Buggy, Your fight with the Meowban brothers, and Luffy's battle against Kuro. Usopp told me all about how you guys saved Kaya from that weirdo hypnotist."

Zoro snorted with laughter. "Right... You didn't meet that guy did you?"

I shook my head.

"Consider yourself lucky." He slumped down again, propped his arms behind his head, and fell asleep again.

I rolled my eyes. That guy must not sleep at night.

I dipped my quill in the ink, blew a strand of hair out of my eyes, and began to write again.

I looked up when I heard a groan beside me. Zoro was frowning in his sleep, like he was having a nightmare. "Kuina..." he muttered. It was almost inaudible, but he definitely said Kuina.

_I wonder who that is... _

* * *

I had just finished writing the last sentence for the last chapter when the rock cap of the island exploded. "Wow! Good shot, Usopp!" Luffy shouted. "You hit it on your first try!"Usopp grinned. "Well, what do you expect? I'm the best sharpshooter around!"

I smiled. "Good work, guys! The marines will think twice about attacking Merry!"

Usopp blushed. "Aww... Shucks..." he muttered. Then, his stomach growled. "Ahaha..." he laughed, embarrassed.

Nami laughed. "All right... C'mon, let's get some food."

We all jumped up and went to the kitchen.

* * *

We were almost finished lunch, peanut butter and honey sandwiches, when there was a huge crash outside. I dropped my orange juice, and the glass smashed on the ground.

"COME OUT YOU DAMN PIRATES!"

Who on earth was that?

Luffy threw the door open, and dashed out on deck.

Nami and Usopp crowded around the door, staring out the window.

I heard Luffy shout, "Just stop wrecking our ship!" and there was another crash.

From his place beside the refrigerator, Zoro opened an eye. "I know that voice..." he said. He got up, shoved Nami and Usopp out of the way, and went outside, with me not far behind.

I poked my head out from behind Zoro's back to access the damage. With the exception of a slashed rail, and some busted crates, Merry was relatively undamaged.

Our attacker was sprawled out on the ground, a fine line of blood trickling from his hairline. He had dark hair, clipped short, a tattoo with the kanji for 'sea' on his cheek. He wore a blue and white hoodie, dark blue pants, and black combat boots. There was a broad-bladed sword hanging from his belt. Sunglasses covered his eyes. He was out cold.

Zoro stepped up, and the colour drained from his face. "What are you doing here, Johnny?" he said.

The dark-haired guy, Johnny, sat up like a rocket. "What?" he said, confused. "Big bro Zoro?"

I stopped. Big bro? This guy didn't look like Zoro at all. Then again, I didn't look much like Luffy, Ace, or Sabo either, but they're brothers to me.

Zoro frowned. "What's going on? Where's Yosaku?"

"Well," Johnny said, running to the side of the ship.

I jumped down to the deck from the top of the stairs to join them. There was a small boat alongside Merry. On the boat's small deck was a man of about Johnny's age. He didn't look too well. His skin was a sickly shade of grey, there was a bloody bandage wrapped around his middle. He was missing a few teeth.

"What's up with him?" I asked Johnny.

Johnny looked close to tears. "He's been sick..." he sniffed. Zoro grunted and put his hand on his shoulder.

"Bring him up here." I said.

After Johnny brought his friend Yosaku on deck, we crowded around him.

"What on earth happened to him?" Zoro asked.

"Well," Johnny said. "I'm not sure what happened. Up until a few days ago, he was healthy and full of life... But now... his teeth have been falling out and his old wound opened up... he keeps fainting..."

Johnny gave a great sniff. "So, I thought we could rest on a small rocky island, but... A cannonball came flying from this ship!"

I smacked my forehead. "Go figure..." I muttered.

Luffy and Usopp stood there in shock. They both bowed so low I thought their heads would hit the ground. "We're very sorry..." they said together.

"Oh, get out of the way..." I said, shoving the two of them out of my way. I knelt down next to Yosaku, and opened his mouth.

Johnny stepped up, and smacked hand on my wrist. "Don't you dare touch my partner!" he shouted. "You're mocking his death!" Some spit hit me in the face.

I wiped the spit off my face, ignored Johnny, and kept looking at Yosaku. "Nami!" I called. "Do we have any limes in storage?"

Nami nodded. "Luffy, Usopp!" she demanded. "Go into the storage and get some limes!"

The two of them charged into storage, fighting to get into the door first.

"He's got scurvy, I think..." I said. Nami nodded. "You're right." she said.

"What's scurvy?" Johnny asked.

I sighed. "It's a hopeless disease that used to play sailors." I said. I stopped when I realised everyone was looking at me funny. "What?"

"That's _plague_." Zoro deadpanned.

I blushed to the roots of my hair. "Sh- shut up!" God, I hated making mistakes like that... Languages aren't my strong suit.

At that moment, Luffy and Usopp came back, they began stuffing the limes into Yosaku's mouth.

After a few minutes, he shot up,looked around, then he and Johnny started jumping around, shouting, "Hooray hooray! Hooray hooray!"

"You can't heal that quickly!" Nami shouted, growing shark teeth. I laughed. "They're so full of energy..."

Johnny and Yosaku introduced themselves as a bounty hunting duo that Zoro used to be allied with.

"Well..." Zoro said. "It's a small world. I never expected to see you guys again." Johnny smiled. "We didn't expect the feared pirate hunter Zoro to become a pirate himself."

Yosaku grinned, then his eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed.

"Let that be a lesson to you." Nami said to Johnny. Yosaku was resting on deck, after falling unconscious again. "Sailors need to learn how to get the right amount of nutrients while eating very little food."

"That's it!" Luffy shouted, making Nami jump. "The ship needs a cook!"

"That's a good idea!" Usopp said. "That way we'll have yummy food no matter where we are!"

Johnny grinned. "Then I know just the place we can go."

I looked up. "Really? I'll man the rudder." I walked over to the door, but tripped over my own big toe, only to be caught by Zoro. "Hey." he said. "Be a little more careful... Brat."

Johnny had stopped mid-explanation. "Big bro..." he said suspiciously. "You really did change... I never knew you to be such a charmer."

My insides leapt into my mouth with the speed of a bullet. I shoved Zoro so hard in the chest that he fell backwards and crashed out the door. I, on the other hand, fell backwards on my ass. "WHAT THE HELL?!" we both shouted. I was embarrassed to see that Zoro wasn't red at all. I swear my ears were pink.

Luffy burst out laughing. "You guys get that a lot!" he said, between gasps.

"Right." I said, rolling my eyes.

"So, are you a couple?" Johnny asked.

"THE HELL WE ARE!" we shouted.

Thankfully, it was Nami who changed the subject. "Where should we go, Johnny?"

Johnny started pacing, like he was giving a mission briefing. "Let this be a warning to you all." he said. "This place is close to the grand line... It's a very popular place for swashbuckling pirates." He turned to Zoro. "There's even a rumor going around... That a certain hawk-eyed man goes there."

Zoro gripped the hilt of his white katana. There was a look of excitement and determination flashing in his eyes.

"Set course!" Johnny shouted. "North-North-East!"

"Our destination is the sea restaurant... BARATIE!"

**Next chapter will be the Baratie arc. I'm so looking forward to writing that chapter!**

**Koe: I don't like the sound of that... Last time she said that, I ended up getting embarrassed. **

**FM13: Oh, don't worry so much!**

**Koe: (rolls her eyes) Please review!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Hello! We're baack!**

**Koe: (yawns) So much for sleeping in...**

**FM13: I had to do some serious editing on this chapter because I forgot to add a crucial part.**

**Koe: Leave it to you.**

**FM13: Hey now... **

**Koe: Let's get to it. Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

**Thanks to those who followed and reviewed!**

Chapter 17

I sat in the crow's nest, staring out at the sea. My eyes widened when I caught sight of a large, fish-like boat floating in the middle of the ocean. "There it is!" I called to Nami, who was sitting in her deck chair, reading the paper, while Yosaku and Johnny were fixing the wrecked railing. Everyone crowded at the bow, staring at the restaurant.

I sighed. Then, I noticed the marine ship.

It was huge. It's three sails were stamped with the seagull insignia of the marines. The ship was almost twice Merry's size, and that became even more evident when they pulled up alongside us.

Someone stepped up to the side of the marine ship, and slammed his hand on the rail. "My name," he said in a commanding voice, "Is lieutenant Fullbody! You can call me 'sir'. Who is the captain of this vessel?"

Luffy stepped up. "My name is Luffy! We only made our flag yesterday!"

Fullbody looked at us. "I see..."

He looked at Yosaku and Johnny, who were cowering behind a door. "Well, it's you two." he said. "A couple of nobodies who go after the small fry. So you were finally captured by pirates."

Johnny stepped into the open, and tossed a pile of wanted posters into the air. "Do you think small-time bounty hunters would go after these guys?!"

The papers flew everywhere, making a huge mess on the deck.

Fullbody turned away.

I jumped down from the crow's nest, and went to stand beside Luffy. I heard Fullbody say, "They're an eyesore... Sink em."

"Luffy!" I shouted. "Get ready!"

Luffy grabbed Merry's masthead with one hand, and grabbed the mast with the other.

The explosion from the cannon was deafening at such close range. The blast shook the sea all around us and the smoke was blinding.

Luffy caught the cannonball with his belly. "Gum-Gum SLINGSHOT!"

He sent the cannonball flying, but lost his grip on Merry's masthead. The cannonball flew towards the restaurant, and smashed a hole in the roof.

We all stood there, too shocked to speak. Marines, pirates, and dim-witted bounty hunting duos alike.

"Well," I said, after a few seconds of this. "This is an interesting turn of events..."

* * *

"He has to do WHAT?!" we shouted.

"That's what the chef guy said." Johnny sighed. "Poor brother Luffy has to work for a year... Unpaid."

I shrugged. "I wouldn't worry about him, Johnny." I said, clapping him on the shoulder. "This is Luffy we're talking about here. The old chef guy'll probably kick him out after three days."

Zoro and Usopp snorted at that comment.

Johnny looked at us, annoyed. "But what are you going to do?!" he vented. "Do you realise that you guys will have no captain for a year?"

I walked up to the bow, leaning over the rail, staring at the wooden walls of the restaurant. "I'll tell you what we'll do." I said, turning to the rest of them. "Who's up for a gourmet lunch?"

* * *

The restaurant was a pretty fancy place. Blue walls and the most beautifully patterned cream coloured floor, nice furniture, I had to admit it wouldn't be a bad place to be stuck in for a year.

Yosaku and Johnny decided to stay behind to fix the ship, so it was just Zoro, Nami, Usopp, and myself. We stopped in front of a podium by the door. The sign taped to the podium said, _**Please seat yourself**_. "Well," Nami said, pointing to the closest table that wasn't occupied. "How about over there?"

If I had one complaint about this restaurant, it was the slow service. There didn't appear to be any waiters in the place. When a guy with huge forearms, a bald head, and a blue shirt finally showed up to take our order, Zoro had fallen asleep, and I was close to sleep as well. Well, that is until the marine lieutenant walked in.

Fullbody strutted in, followed by a blonde lady in a pretty red dress. He spread his arms, and said, "Aahhh... At least the restaurant is in working order."

"That jerk..." I muttered. "Not even worried if anyone was hurt. And he's a marine."

Fullbody and the lady were joined by a blond guy in a suit, who took their orders, and left.

The guy with the massive forearms said, "Hello and welcome, you damn crooks!"

"Wha-" I started. There was no way we could be called damn crooks yet. The marines in Shell town let us off.

"That's our service motto around here!" Forearm guy said. "My name is Patty! May I take your order?"

"Hmmm..." I studied my menu. "I'll have the grilled salmon, please."

Zoro and Usopp placed their orders. Nami was about to place hers, when someone's shouting got our attention.

The marine lieutenant was digging his heel into the blond waiter's hand. "I'M THE CUSTOMER HERE!" he roared. "I'M PAYING YOU! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?! WAITER!"

The waiter was surprisingly calm. "I told you..." he said, calmly. "I'm the sous-chef here." Then, in a blur of black and red, he kicked Fullbody off his feet. He grabbed Fullbody by the neck. "You made a mistake... marine."

I raised an eyebrow. "Well. That chef knows his stuff."

Patty looked like he was going to explode. "Damn it!" he shouted. "Not again, Sanji! Can't you go one day without beating up a customer?!"

Sanji eyed Patty with that same calm stare. "I didn't have much of a choice, now did I? He didn't treat the food or me with respect." He dropped Fullbody, who collapsed on the ground.

Suddenly, there was a deafening crack! The ceiling collapsed. Down tumbled an old man in a chef's uniform. He had blond hair, cropped short. His blond mustache was braided, sticking out at least a foot. He had sharp blue eyes. He was missing a leg, with a classic pirate peg leg in it's place.

Of course the second person was my idiot brother, Luffy.

"Damn it..." the old man grumbled. "My ceiling! Another thing that has to be fixed thanks to you!"

"You did that yourself!" Luffy shouted.

I stifled a laugh and rolled my eyes.

"You people don't know what you've just done..." Fullbody spluttered. "I'll shut you down! I will! I swear!"

The old man eyed Fullbody with distaste.

"Sanji!" he shouted to the blond guy. "Stop rampaging around my restaurant, you baby eggplant!" He delivered a hard kick with his peg leg to Sanji's head.

Fullbody smirked.

Then the old chef rounded on him. "And you!" he snapped. "Get your ass out of my restaurant!" he kicked him out the door.

Zoro, Nami, Usopp, and I just stared. "Mustache-ossan knows his stuff." I muttered.

Luffy got up, dusted off his shirt, then caught sight of us. "Hey gu- OOF!" Mustache-ossan kicked him across the head.

Suddenly, we heard footsteps running down the hall. "Lieutenant Fullbody!" someone shouted. It was a marine, in pretty bad shape. "I'm sorry, sir, but the prisoner escaped and went on a rampage!"

"What?!" we heard Fullbody shout. "He was half dead from hunger when we found him! How could he have managed that?!"

There was a loud bang, and the marine fell, a smoking hole in his right shoulder.

In walked a black-haired man. He was so skinny, he looked like a shadow. His face was sunken, and his breathing was ragged. He staggered to a vacated table, and slumped into a chair.

Patty walked up to the shadow man. "Hello and welcome, you damn crook." he said pleasantly.

The shadow man glared at him. "Just get me some food." he said.

"And how are you going to pay for your meal?"

Shadow pointed his pistol at Patty's head. "Will a bullet be enough?"

"So you don't have any money." Patty said. Then, without any kind of warning, he hit Shadow over the head, knocking him to the ground and breaking his chair.

I winced as Patty kicked Shadow over and over again.

"Thank you, you damn crooks!" Patty said, taking a bow. "And if you need anything, just ask!"

Cheering and applause erupted from the other customers. "All right! Way to go, Patty!"

Patty grabbed shadow by the collar, and carried him away.

"Wow..." Luffy said. "These cooks are tough!"

I frowned.

Mustache-ossan brought his peg leg down on Luffy's head.

"Get to work, Chore Boy." he said, dragging him and Sanji upstairs.

* * *

When we finally got our food, the subject of Luffy's problem came up.

"Johnny does have a point, you know." Usopp said, through a mouthful of mashed potatoes. "What are we going to do for the next year?"

"We won't be here for a year." I said, taking another bite of my salmon. "I bet you five hundred berries that we'll be here for less than three days."

Nami stared at me. "Five hundred berries? Not exactly a huge gamble."

I shrugged. "It's all I got."

Nami sweatdropped. Then, her eyes lit up. Looking up at the stairway, she shouted, "Hey, Chore Boy!"

Sure enough, there was Luffy. He was wearing his usual attire, except he had an apron around his waist. He looked pretty ridiculous.

"We heard you had to work for a year!" Usopp laughed.

"Is it okay if we redraw the ship's flag?" Zoro joked.

"What would the flag be?" I asked. "Probably a ball of moss with crossed swords."

"Hey!" Zoro snapped.

"Hey..." Luffy whined. "I'm slaving and you're eating out?! That's not fair!"

We all burst out laughing.

"What kind of crew are you?!" Luffy shouted. When Zoro wasn't looking, he muttered, "Eat this." He stuck his finger in his nose, and placed a large, slimy booger into Zoro's water glass.

As far as I could tell, Zoro was the only one at our table that didn't notice.

"Why shouldn't we enjoy a nice meal?" Zoro asked. He picked up his glass. He raised it to his mouth. The dramatic tension was just so perfect. "But I do feel for you..." He shoved his glass into Luffy's mouth, pouring the booger water right down his rubbery throat. "SHOULDN'T YOU BE DRINKING THIS YOURSELF?!"

Nami, Usopp, and I just killed ourselves laughing.

Luffy was flailing around on the ground like a fish, his tongue flapping around as he flailed. "I can't believe you did that..." he gasped.

Zoro looked about ready to gut him. "I can't believe you did that." he growled.

From a few tables over, Sanji was serving wine to another table. "Quiet down, Luffy." he growled. "Are they your crew?" He stopped.

The next thing I knew, he was at our table, a rose in his hand. He was staring at Nami with hearts in his eyes. "Ah! Love!" he swooned. "Dear ocean, thank you for this treasure you have revealed from your depths!"

Luffy and Zoro stood there, looking confused. I smacked my forehead.

Sanji started wiggling like a wet noodle. "I would be willing to sail the seas as a pirate, or even a devil if it meant such a radiant beauty was by my side!" He held his heart. "Such a shame... Great obstacles lie between us..."

"And that obstacle would be me." said mustache-ossan, coming up from behind him.

"Gah!" Sanji snorted. "The crap-geezer."

"Sanji," Mustache-ossan said. "This is an opportunity you don't want to pass up. Follow your heart. Become a pirate. I have no need for you here, at my restaurant."

Sanji stepped up, and grabbed him by the collar. "You can't kick me out!" he shouted.

"Don't you lay your hands on me, you baby eggplant!" Ossan shouted. He slammed Sanji into the table.

Usopp, Nami, Zoro, and I all managed to grab our plates before our table collapsed to the floor.

"I'll cook here forever!" Sanji shouted. "Until you die!"

Mustache-ossan walked away, chuckling, "I'll live another hundred years!"

There was a short pause. Then, Sanji disappeared. He reappeared at our table, which he managed to kick back into place. He was standing over Nami, placing something in front of her. "Forgive the commotion." he said. "A fruit macedoine, with my compliments." he said.

"Oooh!" Nami said. "How gallant."

"Not at all." Sanji said.

I sighed and rolled my eyes. _Player..._

Then, I felt Sanji put his arm around my shoulders. "And for you, sweetheart-"

I didn't even stop to think. To be quite honest, I don't remember what happened. All I remember was seeing red.

"PAWS OFF!"

I landed a hit that would have knocked out a tiger on mt. Corvo right into Sanji's kisser. He hit the wall with a sickening, yet oddly satisfying crunch, a bit of blood running from his mouth.

**Well, that's chapter 17. Sanji didn't know what he was doing!**

**Koe: Whatever. **

**Luffy: Please review!**


	18. Chapter 18

**Oooh, Koe punched Sanji! Here's why!**

**Koe: That dirty, rotten, stinking...**

**FM13: (sweatdrops) Okay, okay, just say the disclaimer!**

**Koe: Grumble**

**Zoro: She said, 'Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. Only her OCs.'**

**FM13: Thank you, Zoro.**

**Zoro: No sweat. **

Chapter 18

A crowd of people in the restaurant stared at us.

Sanji groaned as he staggered to get up.

I didn't notice the silence, because of the ringing in my ears. I was seething. "You... Damn PERVERT!" I shouted. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" How old was this guy? Zoro's age?

Luffy doubled over laughing. "Koe, you're hilarious!" he said, between gasps.

Zoro, Nami, and Usopp had a hold of me, trying to keep me from smashing Sanji's face into the wall. "Take it easy, Koe!" Usopp pleaded.

"What good will come of it?" Nami said, her voice strained with effort.

I didn't hear them. Not until Zoro poked me in the ribs, that is. Pain shot through me like an electric shock. I crumpled. "Damnit, Zoro..." I coughed. "Why the hell did you do that?"

"Stop causing trouble!" Zoro said desperately. Though, he did seem impressed by what I'd just done... Or was it something else?

Sanji stood up. "My..." he said. "You're very feisty..."

To my astonishment, he started that wet noodle act again. "That's sooo cute!"

To be honest, I was glad that Zoro and Usopp were still restraining me. Otherwise, I would have probably kicked Sanji where the sun doesn't shine.

Finally, I stopped. Breathing heavily, I shook them off. I gave Sanji one more murderous look, then cursed, turned on my heels, and ran off. "Koe!" Luffy shouted.

"What on earth was that about?" I heard one of the customers say.

"The nerve of that girl!"

"Attacking Sanji like that..."

* * *

I shoved the doors open, and ran out on deck. I slammed my back into the wall, and slumped to the deck. "AAARGH!" I shouted at the top of my lungs.

(_flashback starts_)

Luffy and I ran through the streets of the town. We were being chased by a bunch of angry tavern proprietors... again. We seemed to have a knack for that.

So far, we were neck in neck. Luffy looked at me over his shoulder, "Race you!" he shouted.

I grinned. "Right!" We dashed down the road. Of course, even at age twelve, I was a klutz. I tripped over my own two feet, again. This time, I rolled, spreading the impact across my shoulder.

Luffy stopped. "You okay, Koe?" he called. I nodded. "Yeah. I'm fine."

"I remember you." I heard someone behind me say.

I turned to see the boy who Ace had socked in the mouth three years before. He was standing over me, smirking. "You're the stupid girl from three years ago."

I frowned. "You..." I stood up, not breaking eye contact.

Luffy stepped up, and put his hand on my shoulder. "You coming?" he asked.

I turned and saw the angry mob of people gaining ground on us. I swore in english and followed Luffy down the road.

When we finally lost sight of them, we went back to Dadan's hut. Ace was sitting in front of the door, whittling a branch with a pocket knife. He looked up when he heard us coming. "Hey you two!" he called. Ace was seventeen at that point, almost ready to leave and sail the seas. He wasn't wearing a shirt that day, not that that was surprising. He had been doing that quite a bit the past few months. What I found funny about him was, he had more freckles than when he was a little kid. It made him look younger than seventeen.

Luffy grinned at him, and handed him the bag of food we'd stolen. "Here! There's lots of food!"

Ace grinned. "Great! Take it to the tree fort."

Luffy nodded and used his gum-gum rocket to get into the tree. He smacked his head on a branch, and his neck stretched a few feet before snapping back. That's my idiot brother for you...

Ace turned to me. "Well? Come on." I followed him. Not into the tree house, but further into the forest. We stopped in front of a waterfall, and sat on a log.

"Well?" Ace said, looking me right in the eye. "What's wro-" His head fell on his chest, and he started to snore.

I smacked my forehead. This habit had started about a year before. I didn't mind too much, but it was rather annoying.

A minute later, Ace snorted, and opened an eye. "Wha- ? Sorry, what was I saying?"

"You ask me what's wrong." I said. My only problem was, I could understand the language perfectly well, but I had a maddening habit of not being able to speak it properly.

"Oh, yeah!" Ace said, smacking his fist into his palm. "What's wrong?"

"How you know something's wrong?" I asked.

Ace smiled at me. "You had that look." he said.

I blanched. There was a look? Or could my older brother just read my expressions like an open book? I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. "Met that guy on street today." I said. "You know, the guy you..." I stopped to think, then I made a punching motion.

Ace raised his eyebrows. "Oh." he said.

I turned around so I was facing him. "Ace, what he said two years ago?"

Ace's expression went as dark as night. He didn't answer for a minute. "Koe, do you know what flirting is?" he asked. When I nodded, he said, "Do you know what harassment is?"

I cocked my head.

My brother sighed. "If you wanted to know what he said, all I'll say is, it's harassment. That's why I punched him. I couldn't stand it. What infuriated me worst of all was that you couldn't even feel insulted by it."

I nodded, thinking. "So, if that happens again, I punch them?"

He grinned. "Yep! No one has a right to flirt with you in a way that makes you feel uncomfortable. In my opinion, there's nothing worse than a pervert. If they do, you have my permission to kick him where the sun doesn't shine."

I nodded, grinning at him. "Thanks, Ace!" I said, leaning back on my hands. The sun seemed to shine a little brighter, now that I had that off my shoulders.

* * *

A few days later, Luffy, Ace, and I were walking home from a fight with a group of pirates at the pier. When we passed a tavern, I noticed that same boy, walking up to us.

"Hey, cutie." he said, eyeing me like I was some kind of prize at a fair. He walked up to me, put his hand on my shoulder, and said, "What do you say you ditch these two and-"

A little alarm went off in my brain. Harassment.

Ace held Luffy back. Luffy looked like he was going to do exactly what I was about to do.

I ducked underneath the boy's arm, pushed him forward, and kicked him between the legs.

The boy's eyes filled with tears. He let out a soprano whimper, before collapsing on the ground.

I stood there, blushing furiously, breathing heavily. I looked up when Ace put his hand on my shoulder. He winked at me. "Good job, Sis." he said, winking at me.

"That was awesome!" Luffy laughed. "Our little sister has teeth!"

I blushed even more. Then, I grinned. "Guess it was pretty cool..." I said.

(_flashback ends_)

* * *

"Koe!"

I was pulled out of my daze with a start. I smacked my head against the wall. I cursed under my breath.

Luffy was standing over me, his eyes filled with concern. "You were out cold!" he said. "You'd never guess, but Don Krieg's here!"

"Don who?" I asked, getting up.

"You know the guy Patty beat up? He was a member of Don Krieg's crew!"

"Seriously? Is he inside?"

Luffy nodded. He took my hand. "C'mon!"

* * *

Inside, the damage was awful. Several of the chefs had been shot, Sanji was battered and bloody, and table and chairs were overturned.

"What the hell happened here?" I said.

"Krieg happened." Zoro muttered.

I put my head in my hands. How on earth could I have slept through all that?

The shadow man was on his knees on the floor.

"Hey, Gin." Luffy said, scratching his head. "You said you've been to the grand line, but you didn't know anything about it. "That doesn't make any sense."

Gin swallowed. "Nothing makes sense anymore..." he muttered. "Those seven days were like a horrible nightmare burned into my memory." He paused. Then he started to shake. "Just one man... How could one man sink an entire fleet?!"

There was a short pause. "WHAAT?!" Everyone else shouted. "Just one man wrecked a fleet of fifty ships?"

I raised my eyebrows. "Do you remember what the man looked like?"

Gin nodded. "His eyes... They were like a hawk's... Sharp, and menacing."

Zoro shot up, his eyes wide. "What?" he said.

"Without a doubt," Mustache-ossan said. "That must be the man known as Hawk-Eye."

"Hawk-Eye?" Usopp said, his eyes wider than Zoro's. "Who's he?" he asked.

I tapped my finger to my lips a few times. "Hawk-Eye? You mean Hawk-Eye Mihawk?"

"You've heard of him?" Luffy asked me.

I shook my head. "I read his name in an article. Makino brought me a newspaper to read, you know, because I was learning to read, and I read the name on the front page."

"He's the man I've been looking for..." Zoro said darkly. "Johnny said he comes here."

Some of the chefs started talking among themselves.

"I don't know about old 'Hawk-eye...'"

"But old Red-Eyes was here."

"Aye, he drank so much wine, his eyes turned red."

"Then the fool caught fire and exploded."

"That was quite a sight."

I sweatdropped.

Zoro looked slightly annoyed.

"Do you have any idea as to why he would attack you?" I asked Gin.

Gin shook his head. "We didn't do anything to him!"

Mustache-ossan chuckled. "Perhaps you interrupted him during a nap."

"That's not funny, Zeff!" Gin shouted. "He murdered my crewmates!"

Zeff-ossan chuckled again. "It wasn't a joke. I was being serious. I thought you'd like a friendly lesson as to what kind of a place the grand line is."

I stepped up. "You've been there, Ossan?"

Zeff nodded.

"He probably means anything can happen." Zoro said. He grinned. "Finally. My life's dream will be achieved on the grand line. My rival is out there."

Sanji, who hadn't spoken for a while, glared up at Zoro. "You're being stupid." he said.

Zoro stared daggers at Sanji. When I decided to become the world's greatest swordsman, I gave myself up for dead. I made my choice, so no one gets to call me stupid."

"I can." I muttered. "When it comes to his sense of direction, that is..."

"And me!" Luffy said, waving his like he was a student in a classroom.

Usopp smirked. "As a man, I must agree."

"Right." Zoro said, poking him in the head with his sword.

"Hey," I said. "I'm still confused. Are the Krieg pirates attacking or something?"

"They're after our ship!" One of the chefs said.

"Well." I said. "We can't let them do that, now, can we?"

Suddenly, there was a deafening scream. I heard someone shout, "Captain! The ship was cut!"

"It was CUT?! That's impossible!"

We all ran outside. Don Krieg's huge galleon was in three equal pieces, sinking into the sea.

"Captain!" one of the pirates shouted. "He's here! The one who sank our ships! He followed us!"

I looked into the mist, intrigued. Inside the wreckage was the silhouette of a small boat, shaped a bit like a coffin, with a tall man with something on his back.

Zoro leaned against the rail, trying to get a better look. "Is... Is it true?" he said, his voice shaking.

"Hawk-Eye Mihawk!"

**Hawk-Eye Mihawk is about to make an entrance!**

**Koe: You still need to write it. Hurry up. **

**FM13: Don't push me!**

**Zoro: For once, I agree with the brat. Hurry up.**

**Koe: (smacks Zoro over the head) Would you stop calling me a brat!**

**Zoro: (shrugs)**

**FM13: Zoro, explain your reaction when Koe punched Sanji. **

**Zoro: (pales) N-no way!**

**Koe: (facepalms) Please review!**

**FM13: (whispers) By the way, there will be a Koe X crew member later on, but I'm not going to tell you who it is just yet, because it doesn't happen for a while. Even Koe doesn't know yet! So shhh! ;)**


	19. Chapter 19

**Hello all you Voice readers! Here's Zoro's conflict with Mihawk!**

**Koe: Why do I have a bad feeling about this?**

**Zoro: You shouldn't. **

**Koe: (facepalms) Remind me to never get worried about you. **

**Zoro: Gladly. **

**Luffy: What are you talking about?**

**Zoro: Nothing.**

**Luffy: (pouts) Why won't you tell me the secret?**

**Koe: *ahem* Anywho... frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece, or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

**FM13: Thanks to those who reviewed! I love reading them! Enjoy!**

Chapter 19

I stepped up to Zoro. He was shaking like a leaf. "Zoro?" I said, placing my hand on his shoulder. He didn't answer. "Zoro..." I muttered, tapping him on the head. Finally, I lost my temper. I grabbed his ear, pulled him down to my height, and shouted, "MOSS-BALL!"

Zoro jumped up so high, his feet cleared the rail by a foot. "What the hell was that for?!" he shouted at me. I smiled. "Nice to see you're paying attention." I said. "I was wondering if you were alright. You looked like you were in shock."

Zoro grunted. Then, he paused.

I stopped too. I could hear something. Two familiar voices wailing, "Big bro!"

Yosaku and Johnny were in the water, bobbing around in the waves like corks. "Help!" they shouted.

Zoro put his foot on the rail, but I put my hand on his arm. "I'll handle it." I said. I summoned a wave that washed them on deck.

Johnny coughed up some water. "Thank you, big sis Koe..." he said.

I sighed. "How about as thanks, you stop calling me that." Being called 'big sis' by a guy who was about twenty three is just weird.

I took a look around. "What's going on?" I asked. "What happened to the ship? Where's Nami?" I said when I noticed they were both gone.

"I'm sorry, everyone..." Johnny sniffled. "Big sis Nami... She took the ship and sailed away!"

Me and the guys paused for a second. "WHAT?! SHE TOOK THE SHIP?!"

Zoro punched the wall. "Damn it..." he growled. "I should have known that girl's good behaviour was just an act!"

"Kaya gave us that ship!" Usopp seethed.

I frowned. "But why? That's the question."

"We need to go after her!" Luffy said.

Zoro rubbed his forehead. "Don't worry about her. That woman is way more trouble than she's worth."

Luffy fixed him with his perfect puppy dog eyes. "She's the only person I'll accept as our navigator!"

"Gah!" Zoro snapped. "Fine!C'mon Usopp, we'll use Johnny and Yosaku's boat."

"Right!" Usopp, Johnny, and Yosaku said, going to get the boat ready.

"But first..." Zoro muttered. He turned to the wreckage. The small boat was slowly making it's way towards us.

I walked up to him and put my hand on his shoulder. "You're not thinking of-"

He shook my hand off and strode away.

That's when I noticed Zeff. "Hey, Chef-ossan?" I said, walking up to him. "Who is this Hawk-Eye Mihawk guy, anyway?"

Zeff stared at the rapidly growing silhouette of Mihawk's boat. "Hawk-Eye is a true master." he said. "He's beyond a doubt the greatest swordsman in the world."

I gulped as I stared at Mihawk. He looked the part of the greatest swordsman in the world. He was tall, about 6'6'', with short, spiky black hair, a black mustache and beard, and pale skin. He wore a long, dark coat, opened to show his chest and abs. The sleeves were a magenta colour with a floral pattern. He had light pants, and black combat boots. On his head was an old fashioned wide-brimmed black hat with a plume. What really struck me were his eyes. They _were_ like a predatory bird's, sharp, and menacing.

"So that's Hawk-Eye..." I muttered.

"You monster!" One of the Krieg pirates shouted at Mihawk. "Why are you doing this?!"

Mihawk looked at him with his cold eyes. Then, he spoke in the calmest tone in the world. "Just killing time."

"What?!" The pirate shouted, pointing his pistol at him. he shot at Mihawk.

Mihawk drew his sword, and pointed it at the pirate. The bullets missed him by a foot.

"What?!"the pirate shouted. "I aimed straight for him!"

"No." Zoro said from behind him. "Shooting at him is useless. He deflected the bullets with the tip of his sword." He stepped to the edge of the wreckage. "I've never seen a sword wielded with such grace." he said.

Mihawk studied him carefully. "Without subtlety, a sword is just an iron bar."

Zoro smirked. "I see. Did you slice up that galleon with that sword?"

"I did."

Zoro grinned. "I see. So you are the greatest!" He drew his white sword. "You've got time to kill. How about a fight?"

Mihawk raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"I set out to sea for one reason." Zoro declared. "So I could find you and defeat you!"

Mihawk disappeared from his boat. He appeared right behind Zoro, his arms folded across his chest. "If you were truly a competent swordsman, you would be able to tell the difference in our abilities before we cross swords."

Zoro drew his other swords. "C'mon. You said yourself that you've got time to kill."

Mihawk shrugged. Then, he reached for a cross-shaped pendant around his neck, pulling off the cord, and drawing a small knife that was concealed inside it.

"What's that?" Zoro said, sounding annoyed.

Mihawk raised his eyebrows. "I'm not the kind of fool who hunts rabbits with a cannon. No matter how good you think you are, you're just a bunny."

Suddenly, I felt a mind-crushing wave of vertigo hit me. I could see auras around everyone all of a sudden. Zoro's green aura was thin and dim compared to Mihawk's. It was so bright, I was almost blinded.

Luffy put his hand on my shoulder. "Hey, are you alright?" he asked. "You look like you're going to be sick." He sounded really worried.

"Luffy..." I managed. " That man is dangerous... This is bad. There's no way Zoro can win this... If he starts this fight... Zoro is going to die!"

Zoro charged Mihawk. "Oni... Giri!" he shouted.

Mihawk poked his knife out, and stopped all three blades.

"What?!" Yosaku shouted. "That attack never fails to stop an enemy!"

I held my head in my hands. "Of course he stopped it..." I groaned. My head felt like it was about to crack open, the pain was so intense. The auras were clashing, and Zoro's aura was completely engulfed in a wave of the blinding red aura. I opened my eyes. Zoro was standing there, his arms slack, and Mihawk's knife sticking out of his chest.

I had just enough time to hear Zoro say, "I prefer death to defeat!"

Mihawk stepped back, and drew the seven foot sword on his back. It looked a bit like a gemmed crucifix, with a midnight blade and a white aura around it, almost as bright as Mihawk's. "I will remember your name." he said. "Also, as a swordsman's courtesy, I will use this black blade to end your life."

Zoro nodded. "Thank you." He brandished his swords, and started swirling them like blades in a blender. The combined auras of silver and green shone a little brighter. "Santoryu secret technique... THREE THOUSAND WORLDS!"

Mihawk met Zoro's strike. Red overpowered green, and then, the auras vanished.

Zoro's black swords broke. Two fresh cuts were bleeding fiercely. Zoro stood up, and held out his arms.

"Wha-" Mihawk gasped.

"Scars on the back are the shame of a swordsman." Zoro said.

"Magnificent." Mihawk said. He slashed Zoro across the chest. Blood flew everywhere.

"ZORO!" Luffy screamed.

Yosaku and Johnny were in tears. "Big bro!" they cried.

"Damn you!" Luffy shouted. He grabbed onto a wrecked rail next to Mihawk.

"Wait!" I shouted. I grabbed him around the waist, but I was pulled along with him. We smashed into the wreckage. Luffy got his head stuck in a hole between the wood.

With a great splash, Zoro fell into the sea.

I summoned a large wave, and the sea spit Zoro out like a watermelon seed. Johnny and Yosaku caught him, and placed him on the deck of the small boat, coughing and spluttering.

"Are you two that young swordsman's friends?" I heard Mihawk ask in his calm, even tone. He was looking at Luffy, who was still stuck. I grabbed Luffy's shoulders, and yanked with all my might. Luffy's head broke free, and I fell backwards, my head smacking against the hard boards.

"Damn it..." I swore, holding the throbbing welt on my head.

Mihawk smirked at the two of us. "I'm impressed you two kept your cool and let him fight his battle to the end."

I stood up at that. I stood in front of Luffy locking eyes with Mihawk. I hoped I wasn't showing as much fear as I was feeling. Who was to say he wouldn't try to attack my brother too?

"You don't need to worry." Mihawk said. "I left him alive."

Luffy and I stood there open-mouthed. "Zoro!" We both turned when we heard him sputter and cough.

Mihawk stepped up to the edge of the rubble. He took a deep breath, then he said in a clear, commanding voice, "My name is Dracule Mihawk! It's too soon for you to die! Sail the seas! See the world! Gain experience and grow strong, Zoro! No matter how many years it takes, I will wait for you at the top! Strive to surpass me, Roronoa Zoro!"

I gasped. Zoro had earned this powerful swordsman's respect, which is quite the feat.

Then, Zoro lifted his sword. "Luffy..." he called in a shaking voice. "Can you hear me?"

Luffy stood up. "Yeah!" he said.

"Were you disappointed? You said you needed nothing but the world's greatest swordsman on your crew... I've let you down... I'm sorry..." He coughed so violently that Yosaku and Johnny started wailing at him to save his energy.

"Never again..." Zoro muttered. "I will never lose again!"

I gasped. I realised, with a jolt, that Zoro was crying. I'd never heard him do that before...

"Until the moment comes when I defeat him and take his title, I WILL NEVER LOSE AGAIN!" He paused for a moment. "Is that alright with you...? King of the pirates?!"

Luffy grinned. "Shishishi! Sure!"

Mihawk smiled, slightly. He turned to us. "Boy, what is your goal?" he asked Luffy.

"To be the king." Luffy said.

Mihawk smirked. "Your ambitions are even loftier than your friends. That's quite the task."

"Too bad." Luffy said, sticking his tongue out at the master swordsman.

Then, Mihawk studied me, as if I were a puzzle within a puzzle... One he didn't expect. "You can see the difference in our abilities, yet you stood between me and your friend in the straw hat. Why?"

It was almost like he was testing me, or testing a theory he had.

I frowned. "I had no idea if you were going to attack him too." I said, keeping my eyes locked with his. I couldn't show weakness. "No matter how strong they are, no matter what the reason, no one hurts a friend of mine if I can do anything about it."

Mihawk nodded. He didn't say anything, but his eyes seemed to flash.

"You three make a good team." he said. "I hope to encounter you again, someday."

He turned to leave, but someone behind us shouted, "Hey, Hawk-Eye!"

I turned to see who had spoken. Standing behind us was a man so tall, he towered over Mihawk. He had blue hair, and small, evil eyes. He was clad in dazzling gold armor, which was packed with shotgun holsters, complete with shotguns. He was grinning with only one side of his mouth, which was kind of weird. "That was an interesting fight, but didn't you come here to kill Don Krieg, king of the east blue?"

Mihawk gave him a sidelong glance over his shoulder. "The thought had crossed my mind, but I've had enough fun for one day. I'm going home to get some rest."

Krieg frowned. "Well," he snarled. "I'm just getting started!" All the shotguns cocked, and fired. "DIE!"

Mihawk sighed, getting ready to draw his sword. "He just won't learn..." he muttered.

Luffy pushed me down, covering me from the bullets.

There was a deafening explosion. When Luffy finally got off me, and I got a look around, Mihawk was gone.

"Wow..." Luffy said, smirking. "He protected us from those shotgun blasts! I guess he's not so bad after all."

"Damn." Krieg muttered. "He escaped."

I looked around. "Hey! Usopp!" I called.

"Yeah?" Usopp called.

"You guys go on ahead! Look for Nami until we catch up!"

"Hey..." Luffy said. "You took my line..."

"Too bad."

"Aren't you going to go too?" Luffy asked. "Things might get a little dicey here."

I frowned, then grabbed Luffy by the ear and pulled hard. "I'm not just leaving you here." I snapped. "Knowing you, you'll need my help. You never know what will happen."

Luffy nodded. He grabbed me around my middle, and rocketed onto the baratie.

I squeaked and tightened my grip around Luffy's neck when he nearly dropped me into the ocean.

"Hey, Pops," Luffy said to Zeff-ossan. "If we get these pirates out of here, can you consider that my year of work?"

Zeff smirked. "Fine. Kill 'em, kid."

I stood up, and stared at the group of rowdy pirates. "All right." I said. "Let's go wild!"

**There you have it! The epic battle with the Krieg pirates will be next!**

**Koe: Yeah...**

**FM13: You don't have a comment?**

**Koe: Nope. Please review!**


	20. Chapter 20

**Hello, all you Voice readers! We're finally at chapter 20! Yay! (imagine a Kermit the frog celebration)**

**Koe: So much has happened...**

**Luffy: are you crying?**

**Koe: My eyes are dry, idiot. See?**

**Zoro: (rolls his eyes) Give it a rest, you two. I'm trying to sleep.**

**Koe: You're always sleeping! **

**FM13: Uhhh... Guys... the disclaimer?**

**Koe: Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece, or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

**FM13: Thanks to all those who have reviewed! **

Chapter 20

"Alright, men!" Krieg shouted. "Attack those cooks!"

A huge war- whoop rose from the group of pirates. They charged onto the now open fins, these large battle platforms, brandishing swords and spears.

The cooks roared, and rushed to meet them.

"Wait a minute!" I shouted. But it was too late. The pirates knocked them all down.

One pirate walked up to Patty, and grabbed at his knife. In a flash, Sanji had gotten onto his hands, and kicked a whole group of them into unconsciousness.

"Don't touch a chef's knife." he growled. "A chef's knife is his soul!"

I couldn't help but feel impressed by his actions. So he could be noble without female incentive...

Luffy jumped across the small stretch of water to fight Krieg.

I punched a pirate aside, then I noticed something that made my blood run cold. "Sanji!" I shouted. "Look out!"

It was too late. Someone came up, and with two huge shields, boxed his ears. Sanji fell, his face bleeding.

I gaped at the man who rose from the ocean. He was short, round, and had a thin face. He was wearing a huge shield on his front, back, and had one on each hand. There was a pearl-shaped helmet on his head. His black hair was oily. A single greasy kiss curl tumbled over his forehead.

"Eww..." I said. This guy was, without a doubt, the most repulsive looking man I'd ever seen.

"Make way for the invincible shield!" he said, in an odd accent. "I am Pearl!" he said. "Commander of the second division of the Krieg pirates." He gave a disgusting smile. "I'm the shield man! I've never lost a drop of blood in battle. Not one drop." he boasted.

I stepped up, helping Sanji back up to his feet. "That's nothing to boast about." I said, glaring at Pearl. "If you've never lost any blood in battle, it just means either A: you're a coward; or B: You're the backup."

Pearl gave me a cold look. "Don't talk so big!" he said. "I could easily beat you!" Then, Luffy, who had been tossed towards us by Don Krieg, flew through the air, and crashed into Pearl's head. Pearl's nose smacked into one of his arm shields.

Pearl lifted his head, shaking. There was a trickle of blood flowing from his nose. He looked absolutely terrified. "Blood..." he said, trembling. "Th-this guy's dangerous... Danger! Danger! DANGER!" He caught fire. He clanked his shields together, shouting danger over and over.

"Damn it, Pearl!"Krieg growled. "It's just a nosebleed, Pearl! Don't go on a rampage!"

The fins of the deck were catching fire like dry wood. That was some serious fire.

"I'll handle this!" I shouted, calling on the sea. A wave doused the fire.

I felt a hand on my shoulder. Sanji was standing there, looking very weak. "I'll handle this." he said. "No need to trouble yourself with a filthy pirate like him."

I bumped his hand off my shoulder. "Don't touch me!" I snapped. "Besides, I'm a 'filthy' pirate too. Believe it or not, not all girls are damsels in distress." Then, I grabbed Sanji by the hair. "Get down!" I shouted. I pulled him down, and then ducked myself. Fire pearls flew over our heads.

"Crap!" Sanji shouted. "They'll hit the restaurant!"

Zeff-ossan was standing in the door. With one expert kick, from his peg leg no less, he created a wind that extinguished the fire on the pearls. He smirked. "Oh, come on. Even with a peg leg, I can do that much."

Pearl clanged his shields a few more times. "Danger! With these shields and my fire, I'm completely invincible!"

Sanji stepped up, and ran towards him. He ducked under a new volley of fire pearls, and kicked Pearl in the face.

"Ouch..." I muttered. "That had to hurt..."

"But, but how?!" Pearl cried. "The fire...! My shields!"

Sanji smirked. "You idiot... I've never met a cook that's afraid of fire." I had to admit, he did look pretty impressive, standing there in the midst of all that fire, making it look like the easiest thing in the world.

Across the water, Krieg gave an awful howl. "Pearl! If you're going to damage that ship with your fire, then I'll sink you, fins and all!" He grabbed a huge, spiked ball on a chain, swung it around his head a few times, then launched it at us.

"Coming through!" Luffy shouted. He dashed into the flames and jumped in front of Sanji. "Gum-Gum Bazooka!" He hit the spiked ball far away from us. It hit the broken mast of Krieg's mast teetered and fell.

I stared at the falling mast. "Sanji!" I shouted. "Get out of the way!" We just managed to duck, before the mast slammed down... Right onto Pearl's head. He fell over, unconscious.

I stepped up to Pearl, and poked him between the eyes. "How pathetic." I muttered. "Relying on defense alone isn't going to win you a battle."

Luffy grinned. "That guy was pretty stupid." He swung his arm around like he was going to pitch a softball. "I'm going to handle Krie - Whoa!" He jumped back, just barely avoiding a powerful jetstream of water. "Koe!" he shouted. "What did you do that for?!"

I put my hands up. "That wasn't me!" I protested.

"Ha! As if a little girl like her could use that kind of firepower without a weapon!"

I turned to see a man with a top hat and a long tailed jacket rise out of the water. He was tall, skinny, and he had a flap of greasy blond hair. On his back was a large tank of water, with a hose. A pressure washer? He smiled, and I squinted. People with teeth that bright should be fined. "I am Silas." he said. "Commander of the third division of the Krieg pirates. I would offer to settle this quietly, but the captain wants this vessel." he smiled down at me like I was some kind of kindergartener who didn't understand anything.

Luffy stepped up. "I don't have time to fight you!" he shouted, waving his fist. "I've got to fight Krieg!"

I walked up to them, and placed my hand on Luffy's shoulder. "I'll handle him, Luffy." I said, glaring at the bean pole. "You handle Krieg. We need to finish them as quickly as possible."

Luffy nodded. "You going to be alright?" he asked, pointing at my ribs.

I gently tapped him on the forehead. "I'm healing up just fine." I said. "I can fight. Besides, water is my element."

Luffy looked right into my eyes. Finally, he nodded. "All right." he said. "Knock him dead!"

I smirked. I turned to the beanpole. "Let's go." I said, willing a thin stream of water to hang in the air around my head. "I'll show you some real waterworks."

Sanji stepped in front of me. "I won't let anyone hurt you, sweetie!" he said, becoming like a wet noodle.

I smacked him across the head. "If you call me sweetie again, I'll drown you!" I snarled. Honestly, that guy was going to give me a migraine before the fight is out.

Silas smirked at me. "So, little girl," he said. "You have a devil fruit power. But I assure you, just because you can control water doesn't mean you'll win."

I shrugged. "I don't care. All I know is, you pirates are trying to take over a friend's treasure. I'll do what I can to help."

Silas laughed. "What a load! It doesn't matter what you guys do. This ship will be ours!"

I got into a fighting stance, then I heard a snap and a groan behind me. I turned around and gasped.

Zeff-ossan was on the ground, a heavy shotgun barrel against his ear. His peg leg was broken. Holding his broken peg leg, and pointing the shotgun at Zeff's head, was Gin.

**There's chapter 20! The fight takes a dramatic turn next chapter! Keep an eye out!**

**Koe: (sighs) Why do I always end up fighting the big heads?**

**Usopp: You can fight my opponents, Koe.**

**Koe: How generous of you, Usopp. **

**Luffy: Hey! I want to fight some of them too!**

**Koe: Can we continue this discussion later? Please review! XD**


	21. Chapter 21

**Hello Voice readers! The suspense! The action! The butt-kicking! Here's chapter 21!**

**Koe: You're getting more and more dramatic, you know. **

**FM13: Hey, at least I haven't made a joke about you and Zoro for a few chapters.**

**Koe: What the hell possessed you to do that, anyway?!**

**Zoro: (snores) **

**Koe: WAKE UP!**

**Zoro: (snorts) Wha- What're you shouting about this time?**

**Koe: Nothing. **

**Zoro: (sweatdrops) **

**Luffy: Anyway... Frosty doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters! She only owns her OCs. **

**FM13: Again with the Frosty... (waterfall tears) Thanks to those who reviewed! Keep cheering Koe on!**

Chapter 21

"Zeff-ossan!" I shouted. "Damn it, Gin! What the hell did you do that for?!"

Gin stared at us cooly. "I don't want to kill you. But I don't mind splattering Zeff's brains on the deck. I don't care if he was a living legend who sailed the grand line."

"That traitor!" Luffy growled. "I'll send him flying to... to... Whatever that planet's name is!"

"Wait!" Sanji snapped. "Let's hear what he has to say."

Gin glared at us. "If you don't want this stupid cook to die, get off this ship."

Sanji met Gin's glare for a full minute. "I refuse." he said finally.

"What?" Gin gasped.

Sanji took a lighter out of his pocket, and lit a cigarette. "This restaurant is the crap-geezer's pride and joy. I won't let you take it." He splayed his arms. "If you're going to point that gun at someone, point it at me."

"You're crazy!" Luffy shouted at him. "You'll be killed for sure!"

"Maybe." Sanji said. "But I have my reasons."

"So you want to die?" Pearl's voice said from behind us. "In that case, I'll be glad to send you to an early grave." He pulled back, and punched Sanji in the face with his shielded fist.

Sanji went flying. He hit the rail with a sickening crunch.

"Sanji!" Luffy shouted. "Why didn't you dodge?!"

That stupid cook got up, panting. "Didn't you hear? Gin'll shoot the old man..."

I sighed. We were in a bind... "Whoa!" I ducked and just barely avoided another blast of water from Silas.

"I wouldn't ignore me if I were you." he said.

"Gah..." I turned to face him, when I heard the click of a gun.

"Girl, don't fight that guy!" Sanji shouted at me. "The crap-geezer will get shot!"

I slammed my fist into the rail. "Damn..." I muttered. It was all well and good for Sanji to say that, he didn't have a devil fruit power. The most annoying thing about my power is the fact that I couldn't swim! Even if I could control water. If I got knocked into the sea, I would be toast. I set myself in a sturdy stance. "Fine..." I muttered. "But get that third-rate sea rat away from Zeff-ossan as quick as possible."

Silas grabbed his hose, and pointed it at me. "Take this!" he shouted. A white spray of water hit me square in the chest.

It was like getting hit by a cannonball. What pressure! I was sent flying, crashing into the wall of the Baratie. Wood splintered around me. I slumped to the deck, in a daze. That water pressure was insane! I wouldn't be able to control it at that intensity.

"Ha!" Silas laughed. " What a soft-hearted wimp! Putting your life on the line for an old man you don't even know."

I tried to stand up. Pain flared in my chest, and I collapsed. _Damn... He hit my broken ribs..._ I sat there for a moment, trying to reign in the cry of pain that threatened to escape my mouth.

"Why stand up?" Silas taunted. "The end result will be the same either way."

"Listen, Beanpole." I said, finally managing to stand up, my hand on the wall to keep myself upright. "When I make up my mind I'm going to protect something or someone, I don't back down. Sorry to disappoint you."

Silas frowned. "You can't do anything, so why resist?"

I paused for a moment. "If there's nothing I can do, at least I tried."

Silas opened his mouth to berate me again, when we heard a terrible war cry. "AAARRGH!" We both jumped about a foot in the air.

I looked up, and nearly had a heart attack. Luffy had stretched his leg really high up in the air. There was no way Luffy was going to use that attack, was there? He'd sink the fin, pirates, cooks, and all. "Gum-Gum..."

I grabbed onto the rail. I wasn't too keen on falling into the ocean.

"BATTLE AX!"

Luffy's foot slammed into the fin with earth shattering force. The fin split, and the thick wood splintered, and broke apart, pieces sinking under the sea.

"Luffy, you idiot!" I shouted. "What the hell was that all about?!"

"What are you doing, you crap-hat kid?!" Sanji, who was looking like he'd been trampled by a herd of elephants, shouted, bonking Luffy on the head.

Luffy gave him the most innocent look in the world, then he said, "I'm going to sink this ship."

* * *

"You're going to do WHAT?!" over a hundred voices shrieked.

"Don't talk nonsense, chore boy!" the cooks shouted.

"That ship belongs to us!" the Krieg pirates shouted.

I rolled my eyes. Then, I gasped. "Sanji!" I shouted.

Pearl was coming up behind him again. "I will never let you win!" he shouted. "You'll pay for wrecking my perfect battle record! You can't do anything while we've got the hostage! Burn and die with this special fire pearl!"

* * *

It happened in a flash of grey and black, with the sound of a thunderclap and a cymbal crash. Pearl's shield shattered, and he fell to the ground. He spluttered. "Wh-why... Gin?"

"Gin?!" Luffy, Sanji, and I gasped. Sure enough, Gin was standing behind Pearl, a pair of heavy iron tonfas in his hands. "Sorry, Pearl..." he said. "I have to deal with this myself..."

Krieg let out a growl. "What is the meaning of this... Gin, battle commander of the pirate armada?"

"What?" I said, surprised. "Battle commander?! Gin?"

Luffy crossed his arms. "Hey, whaddaya know." he said, grinning. "My lure-out strategy worked."

Sanji kicked him over the head again. "LIAR! YOU REALLY WERE GOING TO SINK THIS SHIP!"

I gasped and ducked under another Shotgun blast of water.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to ignore me?!" Silas shouted. Damn, I had completely forgotten about him.

Silas shot another blast of water at me. This time, I was ready. I lifted my arms, and willed the water to stop. Despite my best efforts, however, I could only slow down the blast. It hit me in the chest again. Even if I had slowed it down, it knocked me off my feet, and I nearly landed in the ocean. "Damn..." I muttered. How on earth could I beat this joker if I couldn't even block his attack. This guy was beating me with my own element, for god's sake!

I gasped as another cannon blast hit me over the head. I gasped, and fell into a daze.

* * *

I was standing in the middle of windmill village. I was standing behind Shanks, clutching his leg, just below the knee. The gang of bandits were shouting at him. "Your man just shot him! That's not fair!"

"No warning whatsoever!"

"Fair?" Beckman snorted. "Stop whining, land lubbers. You're not dealing with saints here."

Shanks pulled at his black cloak. "We're pirates! We don't play by the rules."

The bandit ringleader snarled. "Get those pirates, men!" he shouted.

Fifteen of his men charged.

Beckman stepped up. "Captain..." he said calmly. "Let me handle this."

I froze in fear.

Beckman smiled at me. "Don't worry." he said. "Just watch me." He drew his huge rifle, and strode to meet the bandits. The first one made a wild slash at him, but Beckman just took his cigarette out of his mouth. Then, as calm and cool as ever, he placed the burning end right between the bandit's eyes. The bandit wailed in pain, and fell to the ground.

Beckman weaved around the bandits like a pro, catching them under their guards, tripping them up, and letting them pass him and fall face first into the ground.

One of the bandits nearly got him, but he stepped aside, and used his opponent's strength against him, doubling his attack force.

I stood there, completely awe inspired.

"KOE! GET UP!"

* * *

I shot up, gasping when my ribs made a sickening crack. "I've got it..." I muttered.

"Wha-?" Silas said, confused.

"Oh good!" I heard Luffy shout from far away. "You're alright! You were out for a while!"

I stood up. "I'm fine, Luffy!" I shouted back at him. I shot him the thumbs up. "You just focus on kicking that gold-plated baboon's ass!"

I saw a vein on Silas' temple throb. "What did you say about the Don?!" he shouted. "You'll die for that!" He shot another blast at me.

I shut my eyes, concentrating. If I couldn't stop the blast head-on, I would just have to use that force to my advantage. Just like Beckman had done.

I felt the blast fly towards me. I clenched my jaw, felt the familiar tugging sensation in my gut, and made a circling motion over my head.

The high-powered blast went around me, like it was on a comet's orbit, and went straight back to Silas.

_All right, water... Faster!_

The water picked up speed until it was nothing but a blue and white blur. It hit Silas in the chest.

There was a sickening crunch, and Silas coughed up blood, and fell to the deck. "H-how did you..." he managed.

I stood over him, wiping my dripping wet hair out of my eyes. "Listen." I said. "You can brag all you want. I don't care how much you taunt me, but be careful who you taunt next time. They might just find a way to overwhelm you."

Silas' eyelids drooped. "I don't believe it..." he muttered.

His mud brown aura flickered, and went out. He had fainted.

* * *

I staggered over to where the central fight was. What I saw made me feel sick. Sanji was on the ground, Gin's hand on his throat. Luffy was rubbing a bunch of deep cuts on his legs. There were shuriken and wooden stakes on the ground. Most of the pirates were in the water.

"Hey! You guys!" I shouted.

Luffy leaned back, so he was looking at me upside down. "Oh, Koe! You're alive!" he said, grinning. "Did you win?"

I sat down beside him. "If I didn't, I wouldn't be here, would I?"

Krieg laughed. "So, one of you has small teeth!" he said. "Unfortunately for your friend, he's dead. Gin! Kill him!"

Gin raised his tonfa.

Sanji just lay still.

Then, Gin lowered his tonfa. "I CAN'T DO IT!" he shouted. "I can't do it, Don Krieg!"

"What?!" Krieg growled.

"The cold-blooded demon man can't kill that stupid cook?"

Gin looked up at Don Krieg, tears spilling down his cheeks. "I'm sorry... I-it's just... No one was ever that nice to me before..."

"What?" I asked.

Luffy leaned over, his nose just an inch from my ear. "Sanji saved him from starvation. He gave him some pretty tasty looking food."

"Oh."

Gin sniffed. "Is... Is it possible that this ship could be spared?"

The look on Krieg's face was one of absolute rage. "Inexcusable!" he roared. "My most trusted officer has betrayed me!" He pointed a large gold shield, with his jolly roger on the front. The skull's mouth opened.

"He's - He's going to use it!" one of his crewmen shouted.

"Use what?" I asked.

"A poison gas bomb..." Gin said, sadly.

"What?!" I cried.

Gin pulled a mask out from under his coat.

Krieg snarled. "Drop your mask, Gin." he said. "You are no longer a part of this crew."

Gin's eyes widened.

"Hey! Krieg!" I shouted. "You have a lot of nerve! Gin gave a lot for you! Now you just kick him out of your crew!"

"No." Gin muttered. "I deserve this." He tossed his mask into the sea.

"Gin, no!" I shouted. "Don't listen to that guy!"

It was too late.

Luffy grabbed two gas masks from some of the Krieg pirates and tossed them to Sanji and Gin.

I called on the sea water and created a dome around myself. I had to hope for the best. I couldn't get a mask before the pirates dove deep.

Krieg pointed his shield at us, and shouted, "DEADLY GAS! MH-5!"

**Ooh, cliff-hanger! Gotta love em!**

**Koe: Right. Please review! XD Cheer for Luffy and I during the big battle. (side note) Oh yeah, you can cheer for the love-cook if you really want to...**

**Sanji: Hey, Koe-chan, that's mean... (tries to put his arm around her)**

**Koe: (Punches him across the room) See what I have to put up with?**


	22. Chapter 22

**Hello, Voice readers! This chapter wraps up the fight with Don Krieg!**

**Luffy: I'll send him flying!**

**Koe: (covers her ears) Luffy, quit shouting!**

**Luffy: Sorry... **

**FM13: Hey, Luffy. Here's a riddle for you. 'You're trapped in a room. There's nothing in the room but a mirror and a table. There are no windows and no doors. How do you get out?' **

**Luffy: Hmmm... That's a tough one... **

**Koe: Should I take this opportunity to say the disclaimer?**

**FM13: (nods frantically)**

**Koe: Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

**Luffy: Koe... Help me with this...**

**Koe: Luffy, you haven't been thinking about it for a minute yet!**

**FM13: Thanks for the reviews! I appreciate the comments and ideas! I hope it's made the story a little better!**

Chapter 22

The problem with having a shield of seawater around you is, well, at first everything is crystal clear, then everything goes all hazy. I had no idea how long I had to stay like that. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. I lowered my shield.

I gasped. Luffy was just taking off his mask. "Phew!" he said. "That was close! Oh! Koe! You're alright!"

I nodded. "How's everyone else?" I looked around. The cooks had all dove underwater, and were now starting to resurface.

Sanji was on the ground, Gin on top of him, pressing a gas mask to his face.

"Gin!" I shouted.

Gin tried to speak, but he coughed up blood, and collapsed. He lay on the ground, twitching. Tears were running down his cheeks. "D-Don Krieg...!"

I felt anger course through my veins. What kind of a monster _was _he? He had tried to kill his own right-hand man! My blood began to boil. I saw red.

"H-HEY!" someone shouted. "What are you doing, girl?!"

Someone put their hand on my shoulder. "Hey, Koe." Luffy said. "Calm down."

I blinked. All the chefs had scrambled out of the water, which was bubbling and boiling. Steam rose from the water. The Krieg pirates were shrieking in pain from the scalding water.

Sanji stared at me, wide eyed. "What on earth...? How did you?"

I bit my lower lip. "It's my devil fruit power..." I muttered. "When I get too upset, well, you've seen what happens..."

Gin coughed again. "D-Don't go against Don Krieg... You can't win..."

Luffy shot up. "Don't you dare die, Gin." he growled. "Live to spite that pansy!" He turned to me. "Koe!" he said. "Heal him!"

I put my hands up. "Wait a minute, Luffy, I -"

"Please! Don't let him die!"

I lowered my hands. "I - I'll do what I can..." I bent down beside Gin, who had passed out. I took his hand, taking his pulse. To be honest, I had no idea what to do. I could stop someone bleeding out, but this was poison damage. There really wasn't much I could do...

Luffy dashed across the fallen mast that had hit Pearl in the head.

Krieg shot a smoke bomb at him. Smoke exploded everywhere! Luffy, unfazed, ran headlong into the smoke.

There was a _chunk chunk chunk_ sound. Stakes shot through the air. One hit Luffy in the shoulder. He kept running. He jumped above Krieg, ready to hit him.

Krieg laughed. He pulled a kind of spiked tarp over his shoulders. "Try punching my porcupine cape, boy!" he shouted.

There was a sickening _thwack_! Krieg hit the deck, his nose bleeding.

"Luffy!" I cried. He had punched through it! His fist was a holey, bloody mess.

He pulled the stake out of his shoulder and said, "See? You're not beating me just because you have some sneaky weapons and a spiked cape!"

Sanji, who was sitting beside me and Gin, sighed. "What on earth drives him so hard?" he asked me.

I sighed. "That's just the way he is." I willed a bit of water to place itself on Gin's forehead. "Rubber suits him, you know. Even if he's knocked down, he'll bounce back. He never gives up."

Zeff smirked. "That girl's right." he said to Sanji. "Even the strongest steel can be speared by the lance of pure grit."

Across the water, Luffy punched Krieg in the face so hard, he flew over to the restaurant, landing right beside me.

I jumped about a foot in the air.

Krieg wasn't moving.

I turned to Sanji. "Get Chef-ossan and Gin out of here, Sanji!" I said. "I don't want Krieg to attack either of them if he gets up!"

Sanji put his hand on mine. "I won't leave you alone with him, Koe-chan!" he said. "What if he tries to hurt you?"

I grabbed Sanji by the hair and forced his head underwater. When I pulled him up again, I smacked him across the face. "Didn't I tell you if you touched me again I'd drown you?!"

"Sowwy..." Sanji muttered. It must have been hard to speak through a swollen lip. He took Gin by the arm, and pulled him into the restaurant. He and Zeff stood by the door.

I stepped up to Krieg. I scuffed my foot against his head. "Weirdo, this one..." I muttered in english.

Suddenly, Krieg shot up, grabbed me by the arm, and lifted me off the deck. I gasped.

"Koe!" Luffy shouted. He made a move towards me, but Krieg took a pistol and pressed it under my chin.

"Don't move, Straw hat." he said.

Luffy stopped. "Put her down, you stinking sea ape!" he shouted. "I'll send you flying!"

Krieg tightened his grip on my arm. I cried out in pain. This guy's grip was like iron! "You're hardly in a position to be making threats, Monkey." he said, grinning. "Now who do you think is most fit to become king of the pirates?"

Luffy stood there, with the most serious expression in the world. "Me!" he said.

Krieg's pupils contracted. He cocked his pistol. "Any last words, girl?" he asked me.

I forced myself to look up. I stared into Krieg's tiny black eyes. "Yeah, two words." I said. "Azure Needles." I flicked my fingers, and the small bulletlike droplets flew towards Krieg. They pierced him in the only place that wasn't heavily guarded by armour: his armpit.

Krieg let out a bellow of pain, dropping me.

I hit the deck and rolled out of the way. I called on the water, making a fist. "Fist of the sea!" I made a punching motion. A huge fist of seawater hit Krieg into the air.

"Finish this, Luffy!" I shouted.

Luffy grinned and jumped into the air. "Right! Now, Gum-Gum..." he stretched both his arms back. "BAZOOKA!" He hit Krieg in the chest.

Krieg's steel armor shattered like glass.

"No way!" one of the Krieg pirates shouted. "The Don was defeated?!"

"Impossible!"

I stared at Luffy, who was falling towards the sea. "Way to go, Luffy!" I shouted. Then, I collapsed.

* * *

"Ah - AH-CHOOO!" I shot up, and smacked my head against something. "Owww..." I muttered, holding my forehead. I hate waking up like that. Last time a sneeze woke me up, I fell out of bed and nearly broke my neck. Ace had laughed himself to tears.

"Where...?" I was in a small room, sitting on a small bed. "What's going on?"

I hauled myself off the bed, and stretched. I heard my spine crack in several places. "Aahh..." Then I realised my bag wasn't on my shoulder. Of course it wouldn't be. I looked around frantically. Finally, I noticed it on the floor next to the bed. I picked it up, slung it across my shoulder, and stepped out of the room.

The Baratie's hallway was deserted. "Hmmm..." I mused. "I wonder where everyone is..."

"Where's my hat?!"

I jumped so high I smacked my head on the ceiling. Luffy was obviously awake. I turned and opened the door where I had heard the noise coming from.

Luffy was sitting cross-legged on his bed. Sanji was sitting in a chair beside the bed. When he saw me, Sanji's eyes went all heart-shaped. "Koe-chwaan! You're awake!" I stepped on a forty-five degree angle, and Sanji flew past me, crashing into the wall. I smacked him over the head. "What do I have to do to make you understand, you perv?!" I vented.

Luffy laughed. "Hey, Koe!" he grinned. "Guess what! Gin wants to see us on the grand line!"

I sat down on the bed beside Luffy. "Gin left?" I said, incredulous. "He was an inch from death when I passed out."

Sanji pulled himself back onto his chair. "He left with the rest of the Krieg pirates about a day ago."

"We've been asleep that long?" I asked. "Geez... I hope the guys found Nami..."

At the mention of Nami, Sanji started wiggling like a wet noodle. "Nami-swaan!"

I rolled my eyes.

Luffy looked at Sanji. "Can you join my crew yet?"

I choked on air. Him? Join the crew?

Sanji shook his head. "No." he said. "I can't leave this place yet..."

Luffy slumped. "Fine. I give up." He stretched his arm and grabbed Sanji by the collar.

"Tell your hand to give up too!" Sanji coughed.

After Luffy finally let go, Sanji said, "One day I may go to sea... Have you two ever heard of the all blue?"

I shook my head.

Sanji's eyes lit up like a little kid's. "You haven't? Seriously? It's got fish and plants from every ocean in the world! It's a seafaring cook's paradise!" He launched another explanation. It was kind of funny, the way he reacted. "C'mon. The guys should have lunch set up by now."

We walked down to the dining room. All the cooks were eating. They told us there were no chairs, so we sat on the floor.

"Hey!" someone shouted. "Who made the soup?"

Sanji's eyes lit up. "Oh! I did! I must say, I overdid myself this time."

"Yuck! It's disgusting!" Patty shouted.

"I can't eat this!"

"Throw it out!"

Sanji grit his teeth. "What's gotten into you apes?!" he roared.

**Splash!**

Zeff had poured his soup on the ground. "Who made this crap-awful muck?" he declared. "I wouldn't serve this to a pig!"

Sanji grabbed Zeff by the collar. "How is my soup any different from yours, crap-geezer?!"

Zeff punched him. Sanji hit the ground. "You sassy pup!" he shouted. "You could never cook as well as I can! I've cooked on all the oceans of the world!"

Sanji started at Zeff for a moment, then ran out the door. "Crap!"

I took a sip of the soup. "This is amazing..." I said.

Zeff smiled. "We know it's good." he said. "Sanji is an amazing cook." He turned to Luffy. "Hey, kid. That baby eggplant... Will you take him with you?"

I grabbed Luffy by the arm. "Luffy. Can I have a word with you?"

I pulled him into a corner. "Why didn't you tell me you wanted to recruit that pervert?"

Luffy grinned. "I thought it would be a nice surprise!"

"You were only half right... Listen, I'm not going to stop you, but I'm not too happy about having a perv like him on the crew."

"Well?" Zeff asked. "Will you?"

Luffy shook his head. "No. I won't force Sanji to come with us if he doesn't want to."

Suddenly, there was a loud crash, and the wall splintered. Sanji crashed to the floor, with something that looked like a merman on top of him. Wait, not a merman. It was a panda shark, and in it's mouth was... "Yosaku!"

Yosaku looked up shakily. "Unh... Big bro Luffy... Big sis Koe..."

"What happened?" Luffy shouted. "Where's Nami?"

"Well," Yosaku said. "We have an idea where she went. Johnny and the others are following her."

I stood up. "We should go." I said. "We don't want to keep the others waiting too long."

Luffy nodded.

"Wait." Sanji said. "I'll come. I'll be the cook for your crew. Our dreams are both crazy, so I'll chase mine with you."

Luffy and Yosaku started celebrating. "Yay! We got a cook!"

* * *

"Use this boat?" I asked one of the chefs. "Are you sure?"

The chef nodded. "It is Sanji's boat, after all." he said.

At that moment, Luffy and Sanji came up, bickering. Luffy was carrying a huge bag of something on his back.

"How much meat did you bring?!" I said, smacking my forehead.

"Only a bit!" he said.

I rolled my eyes. Then, I turned to Sanji. "Aren't you going to say goodbye?" I asked.

"Nah." he said.

Then, Zeff, who was standing on the next level's porch, called, "Sanji! Keep your feet dry."

Sanji's eyes filled with tears. He slapped his hands down on the deck and lowered his head to the deck. "Chef Zeff!" he cried. "For years, I've lived under your roof! I'll never forget what you did for me!"

All the chefs burst into tears. "I'll miss you, damn it!" Patty called.

"I'll miss you too!" Carni shouted.

"Goodbye!" Sanji called. "You crap-guys!"

Luffy laughed and shouted, "Set sail!"

And with that, we sailed away. Sanji waved until the Baratie was out of sight.

**Now the Strawhats have a cook!**

**Sanji: That's right! Wait for me, Nami-swaan!**

**Koe: (rolls her eyes) How pathetic...**

**Luffy: Koe... I still can't figure it out...**

**Koe: Just a minute... Please review! XD Okay, now let me see... A table and a mirror...**

**FM13: While they're doing that... I mentioned in an earlier chapter that there might be a pairing or two in later chapters. If you have a request, review your suggestion. I'll give them some thought. I don't think I'll pair Luffy with anyone, you know, since he's totally oblivious to that kind of thing. ;P **


	23. Chapter 23

**Hello all you Voice readers! Here's chapter 23!**

**Luffy: (bursts into the room, shouting at the top of his lungs) We figured it out!**

**FM13: (jumps) Ack! What?!**

**Koe: The riddle you asked us last chapter. It took us a while, but we figured it out!**

**FM13: Okay, what is it?**

**Luffy: You look in the mirror to see what you saw, you use the saw to cut the table into two halves, two halves make a whole, and you jump down the hole and escape!**

**FM13: What do you know... You got it!**

**Luffy: YAY!**

**Koe: frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. And thanks for all the reviews! **

Chapter 23

"Hey," Luffy grumbled. "How long are you going to keep blubbering?"

"Cheer up!" I said.

"B-but id was all so booving..." Yosaku sniffed. "It was such a beautiful leabe taking, big bwo cook..."

Sanji glared at Yosaku. "Can you even see to steer this tub?" he asked.

"So where are we going?" I asked.

Yosaku stood up. "Be warned brothers and sister." he said. "The course we found Nami taking takes us right into the clutches of Arlong."

"Is what long?" I asked.

"Hahahaha!" Sanji laughed. "That was funny, Koe-chwaan!"

"Do_ not_ call me that!" I growled.

Yosaku grew rigid. Sweat trickled down his neck. "Don't tell me you guys are so clueless that you haven't even heard of the evil Arlong?!"

"Should we have?" Sanji asked. He sat down next to me, and tried to put his arm around my shoulders.

I poked him hard in the bicep. "Don't touch me!"

Luffy shrugged.

**Tweet!**

Yosaku stood in front of us, as if he was a commander doing a military briefing. "Listen up!" he said, in a very official manner. "Arlong is a fishman that is famous for causing trouble up and down the grand line! He was released into the east blue by Jimbei, one of the shichibukai."

I thought for a second. "Shichibukai... The seven warlords?"

"Who are the seven warlords?" Luffy asked.

Yosaku's jaw dropped so far it hit the deck. "The seven warlords are seven government recognised pirates."

Sanji's eyes widened. "Why would any pirate on the sea want government approval?"

"For protection, most likely." I said. "They probably give the government a cut of their treasure for it to look the other way."

Yosaku nodded. "I couldn't have said it better myself." he said. "You remember that Hawk-Eye Mihawk who defeated big bro Zoro?" His face twisted, as if he could still see Zoro's cut and bloody form falling into the sea at the hands of the swordmaster. "He's one of the seven!"

Luffy clapped his feet together. "Wow!" he said. "There are seven more of these guys? That sounds awesome!"

"Hmmm..." Yosaku said. "Anyway, another one of them is Jimbei, leader of the fishman pirates. He's dangerous. In exchange for becoming one of the seven warlords, he released Arlong into the east blue!"

Sanji rubbed his chin, thoughtfully. "A fishman...? I've heard there are beautiful mermaids on fishman island..." he sighed dreamily.

Luffy took out a sketchpad. He started drawing something. It was a fish, with multiple human legs.

"That is such an ugly fish!" I laughed.

Yosaku slapped the rail with both hands. "You guys don't understand the situation, do you?"

I waved my hand up and down. "Yeah, yeah... A fishman named Jimbei releases Arlong into the east blue when he becomes one of the shichibukai, and fishmen are dangerous."

Yosaku sighed. "We're heading for Arlong park right now!" he cried. "Arlong makes Don Krieg look like a kitten!"

Luffy held up another drawing. "How about this?"

"That's just a standing version of your last one." Sanji sighed. Then, he paused. "I wonder what business Nami has with Arlong... Maybe she's a mermaid! She's pretty enough!"

"You're an idiot..." I muttered. "Or did it look like Nami had a tail the last time you saw her?"

Luffy made a few extra scratches on his sketchpad. "Like this?" he had drawn hair and eyelashes on the fishman drawing and written 'Nami' over it in his childish handwriting.

Sanji grew shark teeth. "Tear that thing up, or die!" he shouted.

I smacked him. "Would you stop shouting in my ear?!"

Yosaku started to cry. "Didn't you guys hear a word I just said?"

Sanji got up. "Okay..." he said, stretching. "Time to eat. What do you guys want?"

Luffy stood up. "Meat! On a bone!"

"I want sauteed bean sprouts!" Yosaku shouted, jumping just as high as Luffy.

I sat and thought for a moment. "Grilled fish, please."

Sanji rolled up his sleeves. "Right!" he said. "Leave it to me!" He left for the kitchen.

* * *

"Here you go, guys!" Sanji said, whipping out of the kitchen holding four heaping trays of food. "Your fish, Koe-chan." he said, placing a delicious looking filet in front of me. I decided to wait until I hit him for it.

He handed Luffy and Yosaku their meals, then sat down next to me, pouring himself a glass of wine. I shifted away from him. Why did he always have to sit so close to me? It was unnerving as well as annoying.

"This is delicious!" Luffy said, through a mouthful of meat.

"No kidding!" Yosaku exclaimed.

Sanji sighed. "I don't care about you guys, I'm just practicing for when I make dinner for Nami and myself..." He lit a cigarette and heart-shaped smoke billowed from the tip. I coughed and shoved over towards Yosaku.

Luffy grabbed a roll, but Yosaku clapped his hand on Luffy's. He made some strange hand signals. Luffy looked at him with confusion, popped the roll in his mouth, and swallowed. "What were you saying?" he asked.

"I said, 'That's mine'!" Yosaku shouted.

"No it wasn't! I didn't see your name on it!"

"That doesn't matter!" Yosaku grabbed a rack of meat.

"Hey!" Luffy cried. "That's mine!" He started chasing Yosaku around the boat, making the boat rattle.

Sanji looked up from his glass. "You fools are going to make me spill my wine!" he shouted.

I doubled over laughing as a drop of wine splashed onto Sanji's white shirt.

Sanji was shaking like Pearl had when Luffy had crashed into him. "YOU MORONS KNOCK IT OFF!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.

I was about to take a big bite of my fish, when I felt strange vibrations underneath the boat. I stood up with a start. "Guys, hang onto something..." I advised.

"What?" Luffy said.

"Just listen to me." I said. I leaned over the edge of the boat, placing my hand on the surface of the water. "There's something huge coming our way..."

The boat started to rock and roll around in the water, which had become quite choppy very quickly.

"Here it comes!" I called.

The boat gave a great lurch, and up rose a sea monster. I stared at him, at a loss for words. "My gosh..." I muttered. "It's a cow." It was twice as big as our boat, with large fins, a huge pink muzzle and large horns. It had dark green blotches all over it's scaly back. It was giving us a curious look from it's large, round eyes.

"Wow!" Luffy shouted. "It's so cool! A sea cow!"

Sanji frowned. "Cow? Are you sure it's not a hippo?"

Yosaku looked close to panic. "What does it matter what it is?!" he cried. "Can't you see it wants our food?!"

Luffy stretched his arm out. "Gum-Gum Pistol!" He socked the sea cow just below the eye.

"Don't!" Sanji shouted. He kicked Luffy on the head. "How dare you hurt that poor helpless creature! He's probably just a baby and can't find food for himself yet!"

I shuddered to think how big an adult sea cow would be if this one was just a baby.

Sanji held out a plate of meat to the sea cow. "There there..." he muttered. "We won't hurt you..."

The sea cow sniffed it, and opened his large mouth, showing his large, conical teeth.

A huge tick mark appeared on Sanji's temple. "WHY YOU!" He delivered a hard kick to the cow's mouth, sending him flying backwards.

"What the hell are you doing?" Yosaku shouted.

"That stupid hippo was going to eat me along with the food!" Sanji growled.

I shrugged. "I guess if he considers you a tasty morsel, maybe you should have let him have a nibble."

Sanji gave me a crestfallen look. "Oh, Koe-chwaan..."

I stuck my foot out, hitting Sanji in the face and stopping his new attempt to give me a hug. "Hey, don't you think the sea cow could pull our boat if we can tame it?"

Luffy grinned. "I think that's a great idea! Can you pull it back up?"

I nodded. "I'll give it a shot." I raised my arms. "Swirling trap."

A large whirlpool appeared off our starboard side. I searched around, and found the sea cow sinking about ninety feet below us. I willed the sea to force the cow towards the surface. It was tough work, but the cow was surfacing. When it's large head broke the surface, the cow started to spin around like a sock in a wash cycle. "Moo-" it cried. He looked so dizzy, I almost felt sorry for him.

"Yosaku!" I called. "Can you make a harness out of rope?"

Yosaku stared at us and sweatdropped. "These people are insane..." he sighed.

* * *

"YA-HOOO!" Luffy shouted at the top of his lungs. He was leaning over the bow, laughing like a maniac. We were flying along at breakneck speed.

I was right beside Luffy, laughing along with him.

Sanji sat against the side of the boat, sipping a glass of wine. Don't ask me how he managed that, because I haven't got the foggiest idea.

Yosaku was clinging to the side of the boat for dear life, tears streaming down his face. "Make this thing slow down!" he wailed.

"MOOO!" the sea cow bellowed. He was crying just as bad as Yosaku.

"Alright, sea cow!" Luffy shouted. "Take us to Arlong Park!"

**Alright! Luffy and the gang are off to Arlong park!**

**Koe: I still don't get what's long...**

**Luffy: You know, the fishman guy!**

**Koe: It was a joke, Luffy.**

**Luffy: Of course. Shishishi!**

**Koe: Please review! XD**


	24. Chapter 24

**Hey, all you Voice readers! I've had lots of great reviews! It makes me so happy! So, without further ado, here's the next chapter!**

**Luffy: Hey, Frosty! You have to try this meat! It's so good!**

**FM13: Since when do you share meat?**

**Koe: He's been raiding your fridge for a while now...**

**FM13: Okay, Luffy, here's another riddle. 'I can run, but not walk. Wherever I go, thought follows close behind. What am I?'**

**Luffy: Hmmm...**

**Koe: Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. Only her OCs.**

Chapter 24

I brushed a few flyaway strands of hair out of my eyes. I smiled when an island came into view. "Hey! There it is!"

Luffy jumped to the bow beside me. "Yosh!" he shouted. "Take us there, cow!"

Suddenly, the sea cow gave a great lurch. We swerved, nearly capsized, and skipped along the surface of the ocean like a stone.

Luffy grabbed onto me to stop me from falling overboard.

With a cry, Yosaku flew over the side.

I reached out and caught him by the collar of his coat before he could fall into the ocean.

Then, the sea cow suddenly jumped high into the air, then dove underwater.

"Cut the rope!" I shouted to Yosaku. "If he's still attached to us when he dives, we'll get smashed to splinters!"

Yosaku nodded and drew his sword. He cut the rope, and the cow sank beneath the waves.

Our small boat hit the waves. A wave of salty water washed onto the deck. For a second, I thought we would capsize. Then, we were shot into the air.

Luffy grinned like a maniac. "Yay!" he shouted. "We're flying!"

"Correction!" Sanji squeaked. "We're falling!"

My eyes widened as we cleared the shoreline, flying over a thick forest. "We're gonna crash!"

* * *

I believe the worst part of the whole experience was when we hit the upper branches. One of the larger ones got me in the nose so hard it started to bleed like fireworks. The smaller branches cut into my skin like knives. One branch hit me in the eye, and I was blinded for an instant. I could hear Luffy screaming 'Ya-hooo - ouchouchouchouchouch!' the whole time.

When we finally cleared the branch line, I deemed it safe to open my eyes. Of course, there is one problem with being out of the branches. You tend to pick up the speed you lost.

I opened an eye halfway, ignoring the sting of the wind. There was a moving patch of moss on the ground. I rubbed my eyes. Moss doesn't move. I realised my mistake only a few seconds before we collided.

Luffy hauled himself up beside me, opened his huge mouth, and shouted, "ZORO!"

I'll never forget the look of astonishment and terror on his face. It was hilarious.

**SMASH!**

It was just a blur of upturned grass and dirt. I was really glad I didn't get motion sickness, because that ride wouldn't have been pleasant otherwise.

I poked my head out from behind the boat when we stopped moving.

We had hit the ground and made a fair sized rut. Our boat was, surprisingly, not smashed to splinters. Zoro was on the ground a few feet ahead of us, spread-eagle. He sat up, a large welt on his forehead.

"What the hell was that about?!" he roared.

"Nice to see you too." I grumbled. "How are those wounds healing up?"

Zoro frowned. "I'm fine."

I rolled my eyes. I would have to look at that wound later... Not something I was looking forward to.

Sanji crawled out of the boat, followed closely by Yosaku.

"Where are you running to, anyway?" I asked. "Arlong park is in the other direction. Where are the others?"

Zoro's face blanched. "Oh no!" he gasped. "That's right! We need to find Usopp! He's in danger!"

"There's no point, now!" someone behind us sobbed.

I whipped around. Johnny was running up to us, tears streaming down his face.

"Johnny!" I exclaimed. "What's wrong?"

"B-big sis Nami... _killed _big bro Usopp!"

* * *

A chill swept through the air. "What?" Luffy said, stupefied. He grabbed Johnny by the collar. "Stop lying!" he shouted. "Nami wouldn't kill Usopp! She's our friend!"

Zoro pried Luffy off. "Luffy, don't blame Johnny for this." he said.

I turned to him. "What's the story here?" I said, horrified. "I agree with Luffy on this. Why would Nami kill Usopp? You guys know her better than I do, but even I know she's our nakama."

"Who's your nakama?" a familiar voice said from behind me.

I whipped around. "Nami!"

Nami's face was full of scorn. She looked at Luffy. "Why did you come here?"

Luffy adjusted his hat. "We're here to get you." he said simply. "You're our nakama."

Nami rolled her eyes. "Don't make me laugh." she said. "You people are nothing but a bunch of pathetic misfits."

I stepped forward. "Nami..."

Sanji pushed me aside, and started waving his arms like a madman. "Nami-swaan!" he cried. "It's me! Do you remember? Come back to us!"

Zoro and I both bonked him on the head. "Stay out of this!" I snapped. Zoro nodded. "You'll complicate the story."

Sanji glared at Zoro. "So?" he asked. "Love is always a hurricane."

Johnny jabbed his finger at Nami. "I'm telling you, brothers and sister, that woman is a witch!" he cried. "She joined Arlong's pirates! She's butchered people like pigs! She was rotten from the start! I saw he stab big bro Usopp with my own two eyes!"

Nami smirked. "So?" she said. "Are you going to kill me?"

Johnny's eyes filled with tears. "Damn you!" he shouted. He aimed a punch at Nami.

I felt blood roar in my ears. I jumped in front of Nami, blocking Johnny's punch. I caught his wrist with one hand, grabbed his elbow with the other, and put him in an elbow lock.

"Ouch!" Johnny cried. "Big sis Koe, that hurts!"

"Johnny, don't act so hasty!" I pleaded. "Violence isn't going to solve anything! Not here!"

I let go of him, and turned to Nami. "I still don't know what's going on, Nami." I said. "Luffy told me you hate pirates. It doesn't make any sense for you to join Arlong's crew."

Nami looked at me with distaste. "You're too naive for your own good." she said coolly. "I never hated pirates, I've never been on your side. I was never your friend."

Those words hit me like a punch. I frowned. "Where. Is. Usopp?"

Nami smirked again. "He's swimming with the fishes."

Zoro dashed past me. He drew his sword. "Cut the crap!" he shouted.

A black blur shot past my shoulder. "You cut the crap!" Sanji kicked at Zoro, who dodged easily. They glared daggers at each other. "What kind of swordsman attacks a young lady, Marimo?"

"Stay out of this, you love-struck fool."

I stepped up to Nami, ignoring the fight going on behind me. "You're lying..." I said, my voice quavering a bit. "There's no way you would kill Usopp! You worked hard to save his village! He trusted you!"

Nami's eyes flashed. She stepped forward and smacked me.

I fell back in surprise.

"His trust was misplaced." she said.

Zoro stopped fighting with Sanji for a moment. He offered me his hand.

I sighed and took it. I was pulled back to my feet like I weighed nothing. "Thanks..." I muttered.

Zoro nodded. Then, he ducked under another kick, courtesy of Sanji.

"How dare you touch Koe-chan!" he shouted.

"Cut the crap!" Zoro snapped. "Stupid love-cook!"

Sanji's visible curly eyebrow raised a bit. "I see what this is about..." he said, in a would-be-kind tone. "After that embarrassing defeat, no wonder you're in a bad mood."

I snapped. "Sanji! Shut up!"

Both guys, who looked like they were about to go for each other's throats, stopped and looked at me.

Sanji's face fell. "Wha-? Koe-chwaan... You're taking his side...?"

"I'm not taking sides! This is no time to be fighting!" I snapped.

Nami sighed. "She's right you know." she said. "If you two want to fight, go somewhere far away and fight. I was only pretending to be your friend to get my hands on your loot. You outsiders shouldn't stick your noses into this island's business." She glared at Luffy. "Get to your ship, find yourself a new navigator, and go look for your stupid One Piece. Get out of here! I never want to see you again!"

Luffy stood there, his expression unreadable. Then, he fell over backwards. "Good night." he said.

There was a short pause. "GOOD NIGHT?!"

Yosaku and Johnny gripped their hair, which was pretty funny, since Yosaku's was cut so short.

Sanji put his hands in his pockets and hunched over.

Zoro facepalmed, looking extremely nettled.

I doubled over laughing. "There's your answer!" I gasped.

Nami's face contorted with anger. "SUIT YOURSELF! IT'S YOUR FUNERAL!" She turned, and ran off in the opposite direction of Arlong park.

* * *

"Damn that bitch to hell." Zoro growled. He ducked under one of Sanji's kicks. "Will you stop that?!"

"What did you just say about Nami-san?!" he shouted.

Johnny punched a tree. "Nami killed big bro Usopp! She is a witch!"

I tapped my foot against the ground.

All talk and action stopped. Everyone stared at me.

"You guys don't seriously think Nami killed Usopp, do you?" I said.

"Of course she did!" Johnny exclaimed. "I saw her do it!"

"So you said." I acknowledged. "But, have a look at this." I brushed my hair away from my cheek, where Nami had slapped me. I placed my fingers on my cheek, then showed them to the others. There was a smudge of blood on my fingers.

Zoro's pupils contracted. "Did she-"

"Nami didn't hit me that hard." I said. "This is her blood."

"It could be big bro Usopp's blood." Yosaku said, skeptically.

"If Nami killed Usopp that way, she would have washed his blood off her hands. What about her gloved hand? If she wanted to wear black gloves like that, she'd wear two, not one. Besides, the blood would have dried up by now. It's been at least an hour since that happened, right Johnny?"

Johnny nodded.

"Well, even if it was dripping from her hand, the glove would have stopped it."

Sanji's eyes lit up. "Amazing detective work, Koe-chwaan!" he cried, pulling me in a hug.

Every muscle in my body tensed, and I kneed Sanji in the... soft spot. You do the math.

Sanji hit the ground.

Zoro snorted with laughter.

Johnny stood up. His expression was pained. "I don't believe it." he said. "That woman's evil! Now Arlong is after us!"

Yosaku nodded. "We've only been comrades for a while, but I don't really like the idea of getting slaughtered by Arlong."

"I'm with Yosaku." Johnny muttered. "Our paths split here."

Zoro sighed. "That's fine..."

"Good luck, guys."

* * *

"So," I said, looking down at Luffy. "What are we going to do?"

"Nothing." he said, staring up at the sky. "Look! That cloud looks like your head, Koe!"

I sighed heavily. "Give me a freaking break..." I muttered. "Are we going to Arlong Park or not?" There was a short pause. "Luffy?"

There was a soft snore.

"You're kidding me. He fell asleep."

Sanji sat down at the base of a tree, and lit a cigarette. "Do you think Nami-san killed Usopp?"

Zoro, who was sitting at the edge of the road, said, "I told her she wasn't a cold blooded witch woman. Maybe she decided to prove me wrong."

"What?!" Sanji growled.

He aimed a kick at Zoro's head. "Nami-san isn't a witch woman!"

Zoro raised his sword to block.

**Smash!**

Someone's face was caught between the hammer and the anvil. I took a closer look at the guy. "Oh. My. God." It was Usopp.

"He's alive..." Sanji muttered.

Zoro nodded. "Unless you just killed him."

* * *

"Usopp!" Luffy cried, lifting him off the ground. "What happened to you?! Did Nami do this to you?!"

Sanji looked guilty. "Actually, that was Zoro and me."

I elbowed Sanji in the ribs. "That was all you, buddy." I said.

"Aww... Koe-chwan..."

"Oh!" Usopp shouted, standing up. "Nami! Nami saved my life!" he shouted. "If she hadn't faked my death, I would be feeding the fish for real."

"I told you." I muttered. "That wasn't Usopp's blood."

"It's no use." someone said. "You'll never beat Arlong."

"Hmm?" I turned around. Standing in the road was a tall young woman, about twenty, with blue hair, tanned skin, and a tattoo across her chest. She was staring at us with disdain, her hands on her hips.

"Who are you?" I asked.

Usopp answered for her. "That's Nojiko." he said. "She's Nami's step-sister."

Sanji's eyes went all heart shaped. "Nami's sister?" No wonder she's so beautiful!"

I elbowed him out of the way. "What can we do for you, Nojiko-san?"

Nojiko glared at me. "I want you all to leave this island. I'll explain everything, but you have to promise to leave right away."

* * *

"No." Luffy said. "I'm not interested in her past." He turned on his heels and headed down the road. "I'm going for a walk." he said.

"Wow..." Nojiko muttered. "I can see why Nami had such a hard time..."

"I'll listen." Usopp said.

"Me too!" Sanji chimed in.

"What about you?" Nojiko asked me.

I shook my head. "No." I said. "I'm going to play the maverick right now, and say the present is more important than the past."

"Don't you want to know?" Usopp asked.

I shrugged. "Sure I want to get to know Nami better, but I'll ask Nami to tell me herself when all this is over." I turned and started down the road.

"Where are you going?" Usopp asked.

I turned and looked him right in the eyes. "I'm going to Arlong Park."

**Okay, Arlong makes his entrance next. **

**Koe: Does he look like any of Luffy's drawings?**

**FM13: You'll have to wait and see.**

**Koe: Please review! XD **


	25. Chapter 25

**Hello all you Voice readers! Here's chapter 25! The square root of 625!**

**Koe: Calm down. **

**FM13: Sorry.**

**Luffy: Hey! I figured it out! **

**Koe: You mean I helped you...**

**Luffy: (ignores her) A nose! It's a nose!**

**FM13: Yep. **

**Luffy: YAY! (starts celebrating) **

**Koe: Frostmoon13 doesn't own one piece, or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

Chapter 25

"You're doing WHAT?!" all four of them shouted at me.

"Do you guys have wax in your ears?" I asked. "I said I'm going to Arlong Park."

"Are you insane?" Nojiko shouted. "I told you not to fight them!"

"Koe-chan..." Sanji made a move to put his hand on my shoulder, then thought better of it. "If these fishmen are really that dangerous, you shouldn't go alone."

"Oh, I'm not going to fight!" I said. "Is that what you're worried about?"

Nod.

"Then you don't need to worry!" I laughed. Then, I put on a more serious expression. "I'm not going to fight them until Luffy gives the order."

Usopp looked at me like I was already in my coffin. "Why are you going, then?"

I raised my eyebrows. "Because I'm curious. I've never seen a fishman before, so I want to learn a bit about them before we start trying to kill each other."

Nojiko paled. "That's your reason?! They'll tear you to pieces! Fishmen are barbarians!"

I studied each of them carefully. "I think Zoro's got the best reaction here. See? Not worried at all."

Everyone looked at me and sweatdropped. "He's asleep." Usopp deadpanned.

I nodded. "Exactly!" I turned and started down the road at a walk.

* * *

"Oh! There it is!" I said, grinning. It had only taken a five-minute walk down the road.

Arlong Park was a yellow building with a red traditional-style roof, built high over a huge rock wall, frowning out at the sea. The words 'Arlong Park' were painted in black on one of the higher floors. On a jagged spire flew a pirate flag with a jolly roger that reminded me of a demonic shrimp.

I was about to walk in, when I heard a soft splash in the water beside me.

I turned to see a tall guy with, get this, six arms, and a bunch of spikey grey hair. His tubelike mouth was twisted in a good-natured smile. He looked at me for a full minute, then he said, "Good afternoon!"

I paused. I was expecting a lot of different greetings, but 'good afternoon' wasn't one of them. "Hey." I said, giving him a small wave. "Are you a fishman?"

He nodded. "I'm an octopus fishman! I'm Hatchan! Most people just call me Hachi!"

I raised an eyebrow. "Hachi, eh? I'm Koe. Nice to meet you."

Hachi grinned and shook my hand with three of his. "Say, have you never seen a fishman before?"

I shook my head.

"Are you not from here?"

"That's right."

Hachi's face brightened. "Great! Then you must be a guest!" he said. "A new recruit, perhaps?"

I had no idea what he was talking about. I just nodded.

"I'll take you the rest of the way to Arlong Park!" he said. "Your captain is in town right now, so you can wait for him there."

"Uhh... Thanks." I said. I followed Hachi up to the park.

* * *

My first impression of a group of fishmen... Not a pleasant lot. When Hachi led me through the park gates, every gaze that rested on me was that of a hunting dog looking at it's next meal.

"Lord Arlong!" Hachi called. "This girl is a navy guest!"

Navy? What would the navy be doing as guests of pirates?

A large fishman turned around. "Hachi..." he said, in a rumbling baritone. "Where have you been?"

I caught my breath. Arlong was huge, with blue skin, a long, jagged nose, and a mouth full of razor sharp teeth. His barrel chest sported a tattoo of his jolly roger, and a sun, which looked horribly similar to a brand. A blue dorsal fin stuck out from his shaggy mane of jet black hair. What disturbed me most was his eyes. They were almost as bad as Hawk-Eye Mihawk, except I didn't sense a kind of aloof scorn like Hawk-Eye's. All I saw in his eyes was a kind of mad malice. He definitely wasn't like Luffy's drawings. No matter how I looked at him, Arlong creeped me out.

"Well," Hachi said, "I thought I would show Mouse-umi's new recruit the way to Arlong Park. She looked lost."

I poked one of Hachi's arms. "I wasn't lost!" Geez, the way he carried on, you'd think my sense of direction was as bad as Zoro's.

Arlong walked right up to me and looked me in the eye. "So... Your captain isn't here... As you can see."

I nodded.

"Normally," Arlong continued, as if it were completely normal that marines would come and go about the place. "I hate humans. But you people, I can stand. Your captain knows how the world works!"

I gulped. He wasn't saying what I thought he was saying... Was he?

Arlong clapped his large hand over my shoulder, which made me wince because of my old injury, and steered me over to a bench near one of the pools that led to the ocean.

As he steered me there, all the other fishmen in the place stared at me. I caught a few comments like, "Filthy human", "She's dead meat", and "Do you think she screams easily". Not exactly the kind of people you'd want to run into in a dark alley.

"Hey! Somnus!" Arlong barked.

There was a short pause. Nothing happened.

"Gah! Lazy layabout..." he growled.

Then, someone behind us said, "Problem, lord A-Ah-Arlong?" It was another fishman. He was tall and muscular, not quite as much as Arlong, but still. He looked like he was only in his mid twenties, instead of his late thirties. He had brown speckled skin, a small, slightly rounded nose, and shark teeth. A thick mane of sandy hair nearly concealed his dorsal fin. The guy had shadows under his eyes, like he hadn't slept in days. He carried himself the way a stereotypical teenager would, relaxed into a slouch, a non caring expression in his eyes. He yawned again, and I got a full view of his teeth. My god, he had so many!

"Somnus," Arlong growled. "This girl is a new recruit in Nezumi's unit. Tell her the ropes, would you?"

Somnus dug his fist into his eye. Then, his eyes widened. "What happened here?" he asked.

Arlong looked ready to strangle him. "If you didn't sleep all day you might have been able to stop Roronoa Zoro from causing all this damage!"

Somnus scratched his head. "Roronoa Zoro?" he mused. "That famous pirate hunter? Why couldn't

Hachi deal with him?"

So, Zoro had been here already... No wonder the place was so wrecked.

Arlong sighed in annoyance. "Hachi was... away at the time..." he growled. "Just do your job!"

Somnus shrugged, and said, "Alright... Geez, you don't have to shout... Arlong."

Arlong growled and turned away, his hawaiian shirt whipping around like a flag.

"Geez..." Somnus muttered, "That guy needs to take something for that bad attitude of his..." He turned to me. "So, my name is Somnus. Well, my real name is Megalodon, but they call me Somnus because I sleep so much. What's yours?"

"Koe." I said. "No offense, but you look like you haven't slept in weeks."

Somnus shrugged. "Meh." he said. "I'm on night watch most of the time, so I don't get much sleep at night. Kind of funny really. I'm a little sleeper shark fishman."

I raised my eyebrows. I had never heard of that shark before. "So, have you been serving under Arlong very long?"

He shrugged. "About a month." he said. "I'm from a famous group of fishman pirates in the new world. I was sent here as a kind of ambassador. So far, Arlong doesn't like me at all. Quite frankly, I don't think much of him, either. Don't tell anyone I said that, though."

"You know," I said. "For a fishman, you don't seem so bad. You didn't look at me like I'm pond scum."

Somnus shrugged. "Ah, humans aren't so bad..." he said. "It's hard to find a fishman who's of the same opinion, though. I don't mind weaker species. We all share the same world, right?"

I smiled. This guy was smart. But he also gave me the creeps. I got the feeling that beneath that easygoing surface was a very dangerous opponent. "Mmm..." If only he knew... I don't even come from this world... Whatever. I wasn't going back, so there's no use thinking about it.

All of a sudden, there was a crash.

I looked around, and saw Luffy walking in. His hat wasn't on his head, and he looked like he was just bursting to bust some heads. "Which one of you is Arlong?" he asked.

Arlong, who was sitting in his large chair, looked at him out of the corner of his eyes. "I am. Who wants to know?"

"I'm Luffy." he said.

"Is that so, and what's a Luffy?"

"A pirate."

Then, Luffy walked up to Arlong, and punched him in the face so hard he flew across the park. He landed with a hard thump on the concrete.

Arlong stared at him furiously. "Do you realise what you just -"

Luffy looked just as angry. "You made our navigator cry!" he shouted.

I grinned. "Hey, Luffy!" I called. "Time to fight?"

Luffy nodded. "Let's go all out!"

**New opponents are introduced! I tell you, it took me forever to think up Koe's opponent's name, species, and personality. I wanted her to fight an easygoing character this time. **

**By the way, Megalodon is the name of a gigantic prehistoric shark that was big enough to eat whales. The name means 'big tooth'. **

**Somnus is the name of the roman form of the Greek god of sleep, Hypnos. **

**Koe: Geez... How much research do you have to do for this?**

**FM13: Oh, it's fun!**

**Koe: Okay... Please review! XD**

**FM13: By the way, the next chapter won't be an Arlong Park fight. The next chapter will be in Keith's point of view.**


	26. Chapter 26

**Hey, all you Voice readers! Sorry I didn't update yesterday, but my internet was giving me problems. Just my luck. **

**Keith: Oh, well. **

**FM13: What are you doing here?**

**Keith: Oh, you're nice. This chapter is in my point of view, isn't it?**

**FM13: Oh, yeah...**

**Keith: You're ridiculous, you know that?**

**FM13: I'll take that as a compliment, Wood.**

**Keith: Hey... Anyway, frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

**Thanks for the reviews! They're awesome!**

Chapter 26

"Good morning, sir!" one of my subordinates said.

I ran my hand through my hair with one hand, and smoothed the wrinkles out of my shirt with the other. "Good morning, Vencci." I said.

I started down the hallway. The same hallway that I had walked down the day I had been brought to the marine base. I sighed. It had been ten years... How much had I changed since then?

"Ah-ACHOO!" I sneezed so hard, I jumped off the ground. "Geez..." I muttered, brushing my brown hair out of my eyes and scratching my still itchy nose.

I fished through one of my pockets, and pulled out an elastic band. I pulled my shoulder-length hair into a ponytail. Admiral Kizaru often teased me about the length of my hair. How many times had he told me I should braid it? Too many.

"Good morning, Keith." Someone said from behind me.

"Oh," I said, turning around. "Hello, Vice-Admiral Garp."

Out of all the Vice-Admirals, I definitely liked Garp best. He was a good-natured old man, although he was also very weird. He was always munching on something, even in meetings.

Garp had his dog head hood down, and his suit was slightly wrinkled.

There were two people walking behind him. One was a tall guy, in his early twenties, with a rather ugly blonde bowl cut, and a chore boy's outfit.

The other was a short kid, about two years younger than me, with pink hair, and glasses. Judging by his outfit, he was also a chore boy.

Both of them were looking around nervously.

"New recruits?" I asked.

Garp nodded. He turned to the two chore boys. "You two, this is Keith. He's been serving in the marines for over eight years."

The pinkie bowed formally. "N-nice to meet you, sir." he said.

I blushed again. "Please don't call me sir, it makes me feel awkward..." Might as well lie. The kid looked like he was about to pass out from fear.

Pinkie got up quickly. "Sorry..." he muttered.

I grinned and clapped him on the shoulder. "No problem." I said. "What are your names?"

Pinkie ran his hand through his hair. "I'm Koby." he said. "Becoming a marine has been my dream since I was a child!"

"Good for you for acting on it." I said.

Bowl-cut was next. "I'm Helmeppo." he said. "My father was captain of the marine base in Shell town until a few days ago."

I scratched my chin thoughtfully. "Shell town... You're Morgan's son, then." I eyed him suspiciously. He had the slacker look about him. If he didn't have what it takes, he wouldn't last long under Vice-admiral Garp's tutelage.

Helmeppo nodded. "I'm willing to try my best."

I smiled. "Good to hear." I said. "Good luck, both of you." I started to turn away, when I thought better of it. "If you ever need any help, I'm normally around."

Koby and Helmeppo smiled. "Right!"

Garp clapped my shoulder, hard. "Keith here is a prodigy!" he said, laughing. "Quite the fine young sailor. Although, what would you expect, with his training and his mentor."

I frowned. I had to call on my father's teachings, the one he called the 'superior's no-nonsense talk'. I straightened, and said, "Excuse me, Vice-Admiral. I have business to attend to."

Garp laughed. I rolled my eyes. I liked him well enough, but he didn't know when to act his age. "Go ahead, then!" he said. "Give your regards to the admiral!"

* * *

"Umm... Keith?"

I looked up from my lunch - my favourite dish, risotto - and stared at Koby.

"Hey." I said. "What's up?"

Koby pointed to my chest. "That medal... It looks like the medal given for the highest valour..." I smiled. "You did your homework, I see." I laughed. "Yeah, it is... I just got it. I was promoted as well." I sighed as the memory of the ceremony washed over me. All of the higher-ups were there, all the way up to Fleet Admiral Sengoku. I remembered the look of ferocious pride in Father's eyes as he pinned the medal to my chest.

I scooted over. "Here." I said. "Sit down, if you have the time. I don't normally see people around my age here."

Koby straightened, then sat down next to me. "Of course! It's an honour!"

I sighed and lightly smacked him over the head. "Geez... Don't do that." I said. "This is the lunchroom... We're all equal in front of food."

Koby chuckled. I cracked a smile.

Helmeppo came to join us. He sat next to Koby. He flinched when I glared at him. I didn't think much of this guy. According to the stories that had been passed along for the past few days, Morgan had been ruling by fear. Not the way a marine should act. If I had been there, I would have taken him down.

Koby and Helmeppo started telling me about the journey from their old base, but I wasn't really listening. I was thinking back to that fight with the Endless Dusk pirates, and how our whole unit had been nearly eradicated.

"_Stand tall! G-1!" _

"_Do not tolerate evil!" _

"_Die!" "Aargh!"_

"_*Hah* *hah* Aargh!" _

"_**Is everyone alright? Are we the only ones? Where's the Rear Admiral?"**_

"_I saw him fighting 'Endless Dusk' Noir! He was really badly hurt!" _

"_What do we do?"_

"_How many of us are still alive?" _

"_**We're the only marines alive..."**_

"_Even the Rear Admiral?! No!" _

"_What do we do now?!" _

"_**We stand and fight! We have to hold out until Admiral Akainu gets here! He's not far away! Stand up!" **_

"Keith?"

I gasped and opened my eyes. Koby and Helmeppo were staring at me with concern.

"Are you okay?" Koby asked. "You were shivering."

I sat up straight, and blew my bangs out of my eyes. "Yeah, I'm fine." I lied. I had a job making it sound convincing.

"You were like that for almost ten minutes." Koby insisted.

I ran my finger along my medal of valour. It felt hard and bone-chilling to the touch. "Sorry." I said. I grinned. "So, how was your first morning?"

Koby's eyes lit up. "Oh, it was hard work, but it was incredible!" he said. "Vice-Admiral Garp is amazing!"

"Are you afraid to face what's ahead?" I asked.

Koby nodded. "Yeah," he said. "I'm scared. But more than that, I'm super excited! I have a dream!"

I smiled. "Well, if you have a dream, it's not about life and death." I said.

Koby grinned. Then, his expression turned serious. "You know," he said. "You remind me of a friend of mine... In fact... Nah."

I felt every muscle in my body go tense as a bowstring. "What?" I asked. "Who?"

Koby looked taken aback by my response. "Oh, it's probably nothing... You just remind me of her... the auburn eyes, that's all..."

I turned on him. "Auburn eyes?!" I shouted. "Who is this? What does she look like?!"

"Uh..." Koby managed. "Well, she's about my age. She's got red hair that she ties back in a ponytail. She's got a really kind, yet goofy smile, and she has a good sense of humour."

"What's her name?" I asked. There was no way... Not after ten years... I might have hoped it, but the chances were so small...

"Ummm... Keith?" Koby asked. "Are you alright?"

"Just tell me."

"Koe." Koby said, his ears turning slightly pink. "Her name is Koe. Why?"

My heart stopped. It felt as if time frozen around me.

"Keith... Sir?" Helmeppo managed. "You're scaring me."

"Where did you see her?" I asked.

Koby looked at me with more concern than before. "She's on her way to the grand line, I think." he said. "It's been a little while."

"Excuse me a moment." I said. I grabbed my officer's coat off the back of my seat and tossed it over my shoulders. I turned on my heels and swept out of the room. "There's no way..." I muttered under my breath. "It can't be."

* * *

I dashed down the hallway, not stopping to apologise when I nearly crashed into a group of unsuspecting ensigns. I passed the barracks and went straight to the conference room. I threw the doors open.

Four people were sitting around the round table that was normally used for meetings with the shichibukai.

The first one on the left was Fleet Admiral Sengoku. He was sitting with his seagull-topped hat and his black hair braided. His pet goat was crunching on a piece of old paperwork at his feet.

Next was Admiral Kizaru. He was leaning against the table, staring at me with that carefree look in his eyes. He smiled nonchalantly, shuffling a deck of cards.

Next to Kizaru was Admiral Aokiji. He was leaning back, his sleep mask half covering his eyes. He didn't look too upset that I had just barged in on their card game.

Next to Aokiji, glaring angrily at me, was Admiral Akainu. Admiral Akainu had trained me since before I enlisted in the marines over eight years ago. I knew that glare almost as well as I knew anything else. He was obviously extremely nettled that I had just barged in in such a rude fashion. "Keith." he growled. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Forgive the intrusion," I said. "Admiral Akainu, may I speak with you?"

Akainu growled, got up, and followed me out of the room.

* * *

When we got out of the room, I led Akainu to a small room. I didn't want anyone to hear I shut the door, Akainu grabbed my arm, hard. The heat and pressure made spots dance in front of my eyes. I had really pissed him off. Even when Akainu wasn't mad, he emanated a lot of heat.

"What on earth is the matter with you?" he growled. "I don't recall ever teaching you to be so out of control!"

I struggled against his grip. "Koe... I got some news about my sister..."

Akainu's brow furrowed. He let go of me and I slumped to the floor, rubbing my sore arm. "Are you sure?" he asked.

I nodded. "One of Garp's new recruits travelled with her about a week ago!"

Akainu nodded. "I assumed you had-"

"Given up? I know." I said. "I nearly did. But if she's out there, I have to find her." I straightened.

Akainu sighed. "I suppose you want to search for her."

I nodded.

"Then, I give you permission. Go find your sister and bring her here. I look forward to meeting another member of your family."

I smiled. "Thank-you... Father."

**There's chapter 26! **

**Keith: You notice that only three of these chapters were in my point of view. **

**FM13: You've still got a really important part! Stop complaining, Sailor!**

**Keith: (rolls his eyes) Geez... Well, please review. I won't be reading them, but I'm sure Koe does, since she spends the most time with Frosty here.**

**FM13: Not you too...**

**Keith: Let me finish. Anyways, Review! **


	27. Chapter 27

**Hi! We're back to the Arlong Park arc. **

**Koe: It's about damn time. I'm itching to fight!**

**Luffy: Shishishi! That's the spirit!**

**FM13: Anyway... Could one of you say the disclaimer?**

**Koe: Sure. frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of the characters. Only her OCs. **

Chapter 27

Every fishman in the park jumped toward Luffy. "Human scum!"

"How dare you hit lord Arlong?!"

Suddenly, there was a black blur, a sound like rapid gunfire, and they all flew back. "Stay out of this, you crap-fish!"

I grinned. "Hey, guys."

Sanji lowered his foot. "You always have to dive in, don't you Luffy?" he growled.

"Yeah." Luffy said. "But I don't lose."

Sanji glared at him. "That's not my point." he growled. "Just save some for the rest of us."

Usopp walked up, his legs shaking. "It's alright if you don't want to share with me, Luffy."

Zoro stepped up beside him. "How generous of you, Usopp."

One of the fishmen glared at Zoro. "That's Roronoa Zoro..."

Hachi pointed at him. "That's the guy that tricked me!" he said. "He took me for a ride... I mean I took him for a ride!"

"Long nose is alive!" another one shouted. "I thought Nami killed him!"

Arlong growled. "So that's the connection... You people are here for Nami? Hah! You're just four people from an inferior species! What can you do?!"

I got up. "Actually... Five people from an inferior species."

Somnus, who was still sitting on the bench, not looking a bit worried, snorted. "I take it you're a pirate." he said to me.

I nodded. "I never said anything about being a marine." I laughed. "I just let you guys go along with your assumptions. It also gave me some pretty interesting info."

Somnus smiled. "You're smarter than you look, kid."

I rolled my eyes. "I'll take that as a compliment."

Hachi snapped. He grabbed his mouth and made a trumpeting sound. "Do you boneheads think you can push Lord Arlong around?! I'll turn you into chum!"

He raised his arms. "Come on out, Momoo!"

The water in the centre pool began to churn. A large creature rose out of the water, spraying everyone with a rain of seawater. "Mooo..."

I bit back a laugh. "Hey, guys." I said to Luffy and Sanji. "It's the sea cow."

It was the sea cow. There was a huge welt on his head and he was crying. Not exactly the image of a giant warrior.

"It is him." Luffy said. "So he works for these guys."

Momoo took one look at us, then turned away, swimming towards the gates.

"Hey! Momoo!" Hachi called. "Where are you going?!"

Arlong glared at Momoo. "Where are you going, Momoo?" he said. His voice was deadly calm.

Momoo started to shake.

"Go ahead, Momoo." Arlong said.

Momoo shook so uncontrollably that I thought he was going to start banging the sides of the pool. He turned around, and with a great 'MOOO!' he lunged towards us.

"Follow Momoo!" one of the fishmen shouted. Most of them charged us.

Luffy lifted one of his legs, and slammed his foot into the cement floor. He did the same thing with the other foot.

"Uh-oh..." I muttered.

Luffy grabbed the sea cow by the horns, and started to whirl around.

"Get down!" I shouted. I grabbed Zoro and Sanji by their necks, and shoved them down. Usopp hit the deck next to us.

Luffy had managed to lift the sea cow off the ground. He was swinging it around like a building sized rubber chicken. "Gum-Gum... WINDMILL!"

I looked the other way, shielding my eyes from the wind. When I finally looked up, the place was in ruins. Unconscious fishmen were scattered everywhere. Momoo had been flung out into the sea. An interesting thought occurred to me. I wondered if the sea cow would taste like beef, or taste like fish. Or maybe he just tasted like chicken, like so many mystery meats.

Luffy pointed at Arlong. "I'm not here to waste my time on small fry!" he huffed. "I'm here to kick YOUR ass!"

Arlong looked at Luffy with a new anger. "Well, rubber-boy..." he said. "That works out fine... I was just thinking of kicking your ass too."

I laughed. This was going to get interesting. Then, I stopped. My chest felt a little funny. Then I realised that when I had pushed Sanji and Zoro over, Sanji had flung his hand out to break his fall. Oh he didn't... I noticed Sanji's nose was bleeding. I jumped up. "Pervert!" I shouted.

Of course, when I jumped up, I jumped to the side. So naturally I jumped right into Zoro, tripping over his boots. Zoro caught me before I could fall, but that just made me blush even more. Then, we both ducked under one of Sanji's kicks.

"Don't touch Koe-chan, you stupid Marimo!" Sanji shouted.

I used that opportunity to look up. My eyes widened. "Look out!" I shouted.

I ducked as a stream of ink nearly hit us. Zoro and Sanji scattered. It hit Luffy square in the face.

"you idiot!" Sanji shouted. "Why didn't you move?!"

I figured the answer was pretty obvious. His feet were stuck.

Suddenly, a shadow loomed over us. It was Hachi. He was carrying a big piece of rubble. "Hachi ink jet... On the rocks!" He slammed the piece of rubble on Luffy's head when he said 'on the rocks'.

There was a crack, and the rubble fell to pieces. "Oh dear..." Sanji muttered. "I've entered the fray on the behalf of that fool of a captain."

"You said it." Zoro sighed.

"Hooray, Sanji!" Luffy called.

The fishman that looked like a stingray stepped up. "Well..." he said. "That was a fairly gallant act for a pirate."

Sanji looked at him. "Wanna test my gallantry?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes.

Usopp grabbed Luffy under the armpits and tried to pull him out. Luffy's legs just stretched. Then, Usopp tripped, and let go of Luffy, who hit another fishman. This guy had a tube mouth like Hachi. He glared at Usopp. He started chasing him, shouting, "You must really want me to hurt you!"

I sweatdropped.

Zoro had challenged Hachi. Hachi was stuck to the wall. Zoro was venting at him to get down.

I walked towards Luffy. "Well." I said. "I guess it's down to me to get you out of there."

Luffy grinned. "Sure!"

Suddenly, I felt something hit my chest with the force of a cannon. I flew back and crashed into the wall. I heard a sickening crunch, tasted blood, and blacked out.

* * *

(flashback starts)

"Koe!" someone said quietly, shaking my shoulder. I opened my eyes, staring right into Ace's.

"Ace!" I said happily. I made a move to give him a hug, but I hit something, which fell from our small bunk.

There was a grunt of pain, and Sabo's head appeared, glaring at me. "Koe," he growled.

I put my hands up in a kind of 'I surrender' gesture, but it didn't work. Sabo caught me in a headlock and gave me a noogie.

I struggled and pushed against Sabo's side, but Sabo was a ten-year-old, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get him off me.

Finally, Ace came to my rescue. He had stopped laughing his butt off and probably told Sabo to give it a rest.

Sabo nodded and let go of me and I fell on Luffy, who was still sleeping like a rock. He shifted in his sleep, muttered something, and grabbed me around the waist with one arm.

I yelped as Luffy shifted position again, pulling me onto my side. I struggled against him, and poked him in the eyes, but he didn't wake up. I couldn't move.

Ace and Sabo just looked at me and laughed.

Sabo pried Luffy's arms off my waist and hauled me to my feet. He smirked and ruffled my hair.

I blushed. I felt like such a weakling. Ace woke Luffy up and we went into the hut for breakfast.

(flashback ends)

* * *

"Koe! Wake up!"

My eyes shot open. The light was blinding. Zoro was standing in front of me, blocking Hachi's strike with his three swords. "Took you long enough!" he shouted. "Get up!"

"Urgh..." I managed. "What hit me?" I did get up, though.

Arlong was standing at the edge of the pool, laughing like a maniac. There was a chunk of the pavement missing, right where Luffy had been standing.

I strode up to Arlong, ignoring the pain in my chest. "What did you do to Luffy?" I growled.

Arlong looked at me and smirked. "Hey, Somnus!" he shouted. "You can kill this girl."

Somnus, who hadn't even gotten up from his bench for goodness only knows how long, just looked at Arlong with disinterest. "Do I have to?" he asked.

"Yes! You do!" Arlong snapped.

Somnus got up from the bench, stretched, cracked his neck a couple of times, and sauntered over to me. He stopped about seven feet in front of me. "Sorry about this." he muttered. "I wouldn't fight you under normal circumstances. You don't seem like a bad sort, but, it's Arlong's orders."

"Fine by me." I said. I cracked my knuckles. "Let's go, then. I need to save my brother."

**Next chapter: Koe vs. Somnus! Keep an eye out!**

**Koe: Please review! **


	28. Chapter 28

**Hello all you Voice readers! This is it! The one you've been waiting for! It's the Koe vs. Somnus fight! Woot woot!**

**Koe: How much sugar did you have today?**

**FM13: I just thought a new twist would be a good thing.**

**Koe: Tone it down, would you? **

**Luffy: I thought it was funny.**

**FM13: Thank-you. **

**Koe: (rolls her eyes) Anyway, frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

Chapter 28

Somnus smiled. "You need to save your brother...?" he repeated. "Well, you'd better find a way to defeat me, then." His smile was just as calm as ever.

I smiled. "Happy to oblige."

Somnus studied me carefully. "You have a devil fruit power." he said. "Something to do with the ocean."

I raised my eyebrows. "Wow. You figured it out without my telling you."

He nodded. "I didn't mention what happened to your brother. I never said he was at the bottom of the ocean. You took one look at the crater in the pavement. You placed your hand on the water before you stood up. You're no ordinary human."

I smiled. "Nice to fight a smart opponent for a change." I said. "This will be fun. Short, but fun."

Somnus smiled. "Don't push your luck too far, devil child." he said. "The fight hasn't even started yet." He swiped up a handful of water. He clenched his fist, and charged. "I use a special style of fishman karate." he said. "It involves using a small amount of water to do maximum damage. A human like you might find it... Rather painful." He dashed up to me and raised his fist.

I raised my hands in a guard. Fighting empty-handed wasn't my specialty, but I wasn't too bad. Only problem was, when the punch hit my guard, there was a sickening crack. I flew backwards, and crashed into the rock wall. "Ow!" I gasped. I was pretty sure both my ulni were broken. What kind of insane power did this guy have?

A shadow loomed over me. Somnus was just standing there, his enormous hands in his pockets. "My, my..." he said lazily. "I knew you humans were weak, but I didn't know how slow you were."

I smiled shakily. "I thought you said humans weren't so bad." I said.

Somnus shrugged. "I said you guys weren't so bad. I never said anything about you being on the same level as a fishman when it comes to strength."

I chuckled. This would be interesting. I raised my arms, calling on the water, and small droplets formed. "Azure needles."

"Not quite fast enough." There was a brown blur, and pain erupted in my jaw. I went flying, crashing into something. I thought it was a wall, but then I heard, faintly, "Owww... What the hell, Brat?" Oh. I'd crashed into Zoro. I tried to stand up, but a fresh bolt of pain shot through my head. "Ow..." I muttered. My voice sounded hoarse and dry as sand.

"Oh, dear..." I heard Somnus say. "I must say I expected more of a challenge from you."

I felt someone grab my arm and pull me up to my feet. "Hey, Koe?" Zoro sounded worried. "Can you keep fighting? Because if you can't-"

"I'm fine." I interrupted. No way was I going to act weak in front of Zoro. I managed to get my feet under me, and stand on my own. I blinked the spots out of my eyes, and faced Zoro. "Yeah. I can fight."

He grinned. "Good. I'd hate to have to fight your opponent because you're too weak."

I smacked him. "You've got a lot of nerve!" I snapped.

Suddenly, there was an outraged roar from behind us. "Don't ignore me!" Hachi was standing there, venting and holding six swords.

Somnus stepped up. "I have to agree with Hachi on this one." he said. "It's bad manners to ignore your opponent."

I drew myself to my full height -5'2''- and stared him right in the eyes. "Alright." I said. "I may have started this fight on the wrong foot, but look out. You've gotten your free shots. Now it's time to turn the tables."

Zoro grinned. "You said it."

I dashed forward, calling on the water as I went. I willed it to flow up my arm and around my fingers, creating tiny vortexes. I was betting a lot on this technique. If it didn't work, I was probably going to get sent flying into the sea.

Somnus glared at me. He shrugged, and surged forward to meet me. "Charging head on? Not a very smart move. I figured you would use your devil fruit more. It might, just might, give you an advantage."

I grinned. "I don't need your advice about everything. I need to finish this quickly, so you better watch out." I focused. I remembered how I had caused the sea to boil back at the baratie. If I could cause water to boil, could I freeze it too?

Somnus aimed a punch at my head. I could feel the sheer strength of it ripple through the air. It was now or never. I drained my mind of any kind of emotion. I had to be cold. Cold as ice. If my anger caused water to heat up, serenity could cause water to freeze, couldn't it?

I felt the water on my fingers getting colder, and colder. I ducked under Somnus' punch, and jabbed my hand up, right into his armpit.

Somnus gasped in pain.

I grinned. "Looks like it worked." I said.

"Not quite." Something hit me in the side so hard I nearly blacked out. There was another sickening crack as I hit something hard. _Not another brick wall..._ I groaned internally. _This is getting ridiculous..._

I opened my eyes, but I could barely see anything because of the blue and yellow spots dancing in front of my eyes.

Somnus just stood there, rubbing his armpit. "That was a good shot, I must admit." he said. "But you didn't think of how you were going to get out of my line of fire once you got there. I don't even need to use water to take you down."

I grinned sheepishly. "I guess I didn't think of that... But whatever! I like to take my chances when it counts!"

Somnus sweatdropped. "That's so crazy it might actually have worked under different circumstances." He paused. "Can you still stand? I'd hate to think our fight's over just because you got a little battered."

I tried to stand up, but pain erupted in my side. I felt nausea set in. _Oh no... He hit my old wound... I guess it hasn't fully healed..._ I blinked back tears. I had to stand and fight...

With a great effort, I pushed the pain out of my mind. I had to stay focussed.

Suddenly, I heard a whistling sound over my head. I turned to see what it was. "Yikes!" I ducked just in time, as two swords went flying over my head, just barely missing me. "What the hell?!" I yelped. I heard an all-too-familiar voice say, "Oh, my god! Sorry, big sis Koe!"

"Yosaku? Johnny? What are you guys doing here?" I asked, ducking under another strike, courtesy of Somnus.

"We came to fight!" They said at the same time.

I paused. "You guys... The thought's a great idea, but..." I took a look at them. They had just thrown Zoro their swords, and I could see why. They looked like they had been caught in a meat grinder...

"You guys sit this one out, okay?" I called. I sidestepped to avoid another one of Somnus' attacks, jumped, and used his head as a springboard to propel myself towards the water. I winced as I landed. I might have landed on my feet, but that springboard act had drained me of a lot of energy... Just goes to show how bad a condition I was in. I placed my hand on the surface of the water. I could sense Luffy down there. He was still stuck in that piece of rock, but there were also two people down there with him... With a hammer? No, that's not right... There was one person down there, doing CPR, if my underwater senses were accurate. Also, Luffy's body was down there, but not his head. I blanched. _What the...? _

Realisation dawned in my mind like a sunrise. Of course! Luffy's head wasn't down there because they'd stretched his neck and brought his head to the surface! Sometimes, regular people can be just the right people to handle a situation. I grinned. I knew what I had to do.

Somnus turned around. He looked absolutely astonished that I had done that. "Why didn't you just attack me?" he said. "Instead of doing an acrobatics performance?"

I laughed. "I dunno... I guess, no matter how much I need to finish, I'm kind of enjoying this..."

Somnus looked astonished. "Your brother is drowning at the bottom of the ocean, and you're enjoying this fight?"

I smiled sweetly. "My brother is in good hands, I'd say..." I had to keep him distracted. I was pretty sure that if Somnus found out about what they were doing down there, he would dive underwater and attack them. If he did that, there would be only so much I could do.

I couldn't afford to waste any more time... I only had one choice.

I called on the water. That was the easy part. There was water everywhere. Now for the hard part. I raised my arms, closed my eyes and concentrated. The water started to churn. _Focus on the top layer of water... _I thought. I didn't want Luffy or the other person - was that Nojiko? - getting caught up in this... I felt a tugging sensation in my gut. "Urrg..." I muttered. "Controlling this much right now is such a pain..." _Come on... Come on... MOVE!_

The pools exploded. Water poured everywhere. I used all my willpower to make it condense into a twenty foot diameter sphere. I raised my arms. Heat. I needed heat. The inside of the sphere started churning and bubbling. I smiled. "Okay." I said to Somnus. "I'm ready. Come at me and see if you can stop this!"

Somnus gasped. "How...?"

I smiled. "Did you know... The Water-Water fruit: Paramythia model not only gives me the ability to control the direction water moves, but the temperature of the water as well? I'm sure even a fishman, who can breathe underwater, wouldn't do too well in a boiling sphere."

I willed the boiling water sphere to shoot towards Somnus. I felt a painful tug in my neck. I needed to finish this quickly. _Faster, faster..._

Somnus took up a fighting stance. "Well," he chuckled. "This is getting much more interesting." He jumped. If he dodged the sphere, he would hit the pool. I couldn't let that happen. I made a grabbing motion. Tendrils of boiling water sprang from the sphere and wrapped around Somnus' arms and legs. I winced in sympathy as one grabbed him by the neck.

I stepped up to the sphere. "Hey, Somnus." I said. "Still thinking I'm not a worthy opponent?"

Somnus gave me that nonchalant smile. "Hey, I haven't seen what you can do with this attack." he winced from the heat of the water. "Don't ask me if I'm impressed yet."

I smiled. "Don't worry. I'll do just that." I crossed my hand in front of me. The water mimicked my movements, and Somnus was submerged in the boiling sphere.

Finally, I focussed on an explosion. The sphere burst apart, steam rising like a nuclear mushroom cloud, heat nearly scalding my skin. I jumped back. "Yeowch!" I yelped. "Maybe I should have tested out that attack before I tried it.

I stopped when I heard a groan. Somnus was still conscious. I knelt down beside him. "Well, colour me impressed." I said. "You're still up."

He smiled, slightly. "I-I recognise your attitude..." he muttered. "You remind me of a buddy of mine from the new world... Just as weird... Just as unpredictable... Heh."

I froze. "A friend in the new world? Who might that be?"

I never got my answer, though. Somnus just coughed, and passed out.

I stood up painfully. "Well..." I said. "I wish our fight could have lasted longer... You were a worthy opponent." I smiled. Then, pain overcame me, and I collapsed.

**Luffy: Yay! Koe kicked his butt!**

**Koe: Yeah, yeah. **

**Zoro: Hachi was a much tougher opponent.**

**Koe: How would you know? You didn't fight him. **

**Yosaku: Big bro Zoro... Big sis Koe... This is no time to be fighting...**

**Johnny: He's right, you two.**

**Luffy: Shishishishi! I have such a weird crew!**

**Koe: (rolls her eyes) **

**Please review! XD**


	29. Chapter 29

**Hello, all you Voice readers!**

**Sorry for the wait. This chapter took me a while to write. **

**Koe: I noticed we have sixty reviews now. **

**FM13: Oh, right! Thanks to Molly Grace 16, Chocolatluver4ever, Grey-Skye-eyes, animagirl, ShadowFang152, Shiningheart of ThunderClan, MsWildLuck, Kirera, 4701rose, FEARFLUFFY, VIVI, and fire fist not ace for reviewing! These reviews really make my day!**

**Luffy: Yay! You guys rock!**

**Koe: Luffy, you're yelling in my ear. **

**Zoro: What else is new?**

**Sanji: Don't talk to Koe-chan like that!**

**Koe: He didn't say anything wrong.**

**Nami: You people are crazy.**

**Usopp: No kidding. Reminds me of how those cannibals I fought at age five acted. I was sure surprised when they-**

**Koe: Okay, Usopp, we get it. You're an amazing warrior of the sea.**

**Usopp: Thank you, Koe.**

**Koe: No problem. **

**Luffy: I'll say the disclaimer then. Frosty doesn't own One Piece, or any of the characters! Only her OCs. **

**FM13: Enjoy!**

Chapter 29

I didn't come to under very pleasant circumstances. Go figure. The first thing I noticed was my splitting headache. "Oh, boy..." I muttered. "I overdid it, big time..." That's the problem with my devil fruit. If I use too much energy, it really hurts.

I hauled myself off the concrete floor, and rubbed my head. Then, something hit me. Wait, not something... some_one_. I was nearly knocked off my feet. I did, however, fall down with Sanji of all people on top of me. "Sanji!" I snapped, smacking him. "Control yourself, you per-" I stopped.

Sanji was covered in blood. He coughed and gasped. "Damn it..." he muttered. "That guy's power is in a class of it's own! So that's the power of a shark!"

A shark?

I rubbed my eyes and took my first good look around since before I passed out. The place was in ruins. Hachi and the ray fishman were out cold on the ground. Next to me was Somnus, still unconscious as well. Arlong was standing over Zoro, laughing. Zoro wasn't moving.

Fear flooded through me and turned my blood to ice. I dashed forward and stood in front of Zoro, arms outstretched. "Hey, Arlong!" I snarled. "Back off!"

Arlong grinned, showing all his dagger like teeth. "Are you trying to order me around, puny human?" he growled.

Behind me, Zoro groaned. "Koe... Don't..."

I turned around and looked at Zoro and Sanji, who were hurt and almost unconscious. I glared at Arlong. "I'm not going to let you hurt my friends any more, Arlong." I growled.

Sanji looked up. For a second, I thought he was going to say something deep like, 'Kick his ass', or maybe 'be careful'. Instead, he did his wet noodle act, which looks a whole lot creepier when he's not standing up, and swooned. "Koe-chwaaan!"

I focussed on not strangling one of the people I was sticking my neck out for. "Shut up, Sanji!" I snapped.

Then Arlong really did laugh. "You? What do you think you can do against me?" He scooped up a handful of water. "You might have a devil fruit power, human brat," he said. "But that won't do you any good against me." He flicked his wrist.

The water shot towards me like a bullet.

All my senses went on high alert. I deflected the water with my palms just in time. "OUCH!" I pulled my hands back. They were cut and bleeding. "How the hell?" I muttered.

Arlong snorted. "You think that a human like you could ever master water like a fishman?! HA! I could defeat you in one blow!"

I smirked. "You've already been proven wrong in that respect, then."

Arlong went from blue to purple. I guess a blue fishman wouldn't be able to turn red.

I guess I made a bit of a mistake, pissing him off like that.

Arlong grabbed me by the neck before I could react. His grip was stronger than Don Krieg's. He lifted me off the ground with no trouble.

Zoro tried to dart forward, but he winced.

I put my hand on Arlong's huge wrist, trying to find a pressure point. Unfortunately, fishmen don't have the same pressure points in their wrists as humans do. Either that or Arlong's muscles were so tough that simple pressure points wouldn't affect him. Arlong tightened his grip on my neck. He bent down and picked up another handful of water. He placed his hand on my side, and grinned.

Pain exploded in my side. The world narrowed. My ears rang. There was a sickening crunch, my mouth filled with liquid, and I coughed up blood.

Arlong's laughter echoed through my mind. "See?!" he laughed. "Even a devil fruit user is helpless in comparison to the mighty fishmen!"

I frowned. I wondered if I could talk with Arlong's webbed hand around my throat. I managed a wry smile. "Don't be so delusional." I managed. "You can't prove your strength by attacking someone who's injured from a fight, even if said person has a devil fruit power."

Arlong's expression changed from condescension to fury. He looked like he wanted to crush my skull. Instead, he tossed me towards the water. "Then let the water be your demise!" he growled.

There was nothing I could do. I was in too much pain to move. I felt someone jump forward and catch me.

"Are you alright, Koe-chan?"

I frowned. "Saved by you, Sanji..." I grumbled. "You can go ahead and let me drown now..."

Sanji put me down next to the wall.

"I'll handle Arlong..." Sanji muttered in my ear.

I opened an eye, staring at Arlong. Suddenly, everything seemed to go black except Arlong, Zoro, Sanji and I. Multi Coloured flames surrounded us, becoming auras.

"Oh no..." I groaned. "Not now... Not now..." I hated this, what could you call it, ability? It was terrifying seeing how much stronger your opponent was.

Arlong's teal aura was burning so bright it almost burned my eyes. Maybe it was because I was so badly injured. Even so, it wasn't as bad as the first time it happened. Arlong's aura was tarnished and dim compared to Hawk-Eye Mihawk's, and I was at pretty much full health at the time. _Don't think about that._ I chided myself. _You're only scaring yourself. Everyone survived that scrape. Think about the situation at hand._

"Arlong!" someone shouted.

I turned, wincing in pain. "Nami!" I gasped.

Nami was standing at the gateway, next to Johnny and Yosaku. She had a bandage on her shoulder, her staff in her hand, and Luffy's hat on her head. "I'm here to kill you." she said.

Arlong paused, then he burst out laughing. "You're here to kill me?!" he guffawed. "How many times have you tried to kill me? Poisons, sneak attacks, assassins! What's the result? I'm still here, ain't I? And now you've hired these pathetic pirates to protect you! That's pretty sad Nami!"

I tried to get up, swallowing my fear. Damn this stupid sight of aura's... "Shut up..." I growled. "How dare you talk to her like that...?"

Arlong frowned, stepped forward, and kicked me. I flew through the air, oblivious to everything except the pain in my chest. I opened an eye. Arlong had disappeared. Then, someone grabbed me by the neck and tossed me back the other way. I hadn't even noticed Arlong move.

"Stop, Arlong!" Nami screamed.

I coughed as I hit the concrete floor. My ears rang. Why did I have to be so weak?! Why couldn't I even protect my friends?

"I'll give you a choice, Nami." Arlong said.

I coughed as Arlong stomped on my back.

"Either you can return to my crew and draw sea charts for me..." He flipped me over with his foot and stepped on my chest like I was some kind of human soccer ball.

"Or stay with them." Arlong's weight shifted. I figured he had spread his arms, but I couldn't tell.

"If you stay with them, I kill everyone here, except you. If you return to us, I will spare the people of Coco village." He took his foot off me.

I coughed and took a deep breath. He moved onto Sanji, and stepped on him. "I will kill these three, of course. They sealed their fates." He paused, his eyes full of malice. "Are you _my_ navigator... Or _theirs_?"

I grabbed Arlong's ankle. "Don't you dare threaten all these people..." I managed. "We didn't come here because she hired us. We're here because Nami's our nakama..."

I heard Nami chuckle. "I'm sorry, everyone..." she said to the many villagers watching. "Fight and die

with me!"

The villagers cheered.

I smiled. That was the last thing I remembered before I passed out again.

* * *

I woke up when a huge wave washed over me. "Aack!" I yelped. For a moment, all I could register was the nip of the cold water, and the throb in my chest.

The cold wasn't as big a surprise as what came next. Someone landed right on top of me, nearly knocking the wind out of me.

"Oh! Koe! You're awake!"

I grinned. I'd never been so happy to hear one of my idiot brother's stupid comments. "Nice to see you out of water again." I said. "What's the story?"

Luffy opened his mouth to explain, but he gasped.

"Look out!" Luffy whipped around, placed his hand on my forehead, and shoved my head to the ground. A large sawlike sword slashed over our heads. Arlong was standing over us, a murderous look in his eyes. His pupils were slits. In his hand was that blade, a steel bar with six wickedly sharp steel triangles tied to it with leather ties.

Arlong grinned. "Die."

Luffy grabbed me by the waist, and jumped out of the way.

"Luffy!" I shouted over the whistling of the wind. "I'm weighing you down!" I was too late.

Arlong grabbed Luffy by the hair, yanked him backward, and smashed us through the wall. I hit the wall on the other side and smacked my head, hard. "Oww..." I groaned.

I took a look around. We were in a room on the top floor. There was a desk in the corner, no bed, and piles upon piles of papers. One fluttered off a pile and drifted softly on my head. I grabbed it and took a look. "A sea chart..." I muttered.

Arlong laughed. "Fishmen are excellent at gathering oceanic data. But without a good cartographer, it's worthless. Nami's a genius."

I glared at Arlong. "You half-fish scumbag..." I growled.

Arlong spread his arms. "Nothing's more tragic and stupid than wasting such amazing talent!" He leveled his saw at Luffy's neck. "Do you think you can use that girl as well as I can?!"

Luffy didn't say anything. He put his hand on the blade of the saw. There was a cracking noise. I noticed Luffy's shoulders were shaking. When he spoke, his voice was trembling with rage. "USE...?"

Arlong looked horrified. "My saw! How did you?!"

Luffy's glare was murderous. "What do you think Nami is, anyway?!"

Arlong grinned. " Nami lacks for nothing here." he said. "I will feed her, give her all the pretty clothes she wants. After all, we're shipmates."

Suddenly, moved by a sudden impulse, Luffy kicked the desk through the hole in the wall. He started destroying bookshelves and charts.

"Stop!" Arlong roared. "You're destroying eight years of Nami's work!"

Luffy glared at him. "The problem is this room! Nami suffered terribly here! I'm going to blast it to smithereens!" He straightened. "Koe!"

I nearly whacked my head in surprise. "Yeah?"

"Can you summon a wave?"

"How-"

"Can you or can't you?"

I sighed. "I'm almost out of steam, but I think I might be able to manage one more."

Luffy nodded.

Arlong lunged. He started to spin.

Luffy raised his leg, kicking a hole in the roof. "Gum-Gum..."

Arlong's attack caught him in the leg.

Luffy cried out. He brought his leg down. "NOW!" he shouted.

I raised my arms. The sea seemed to struggle, and I thought my heart might explode, but I wasn't going to take 'no' for an answer.

"BATTLE AX!"

Luffy's kick brought the huge building down to the ground, and a wave crashed into the building. Arlong park sank into the sea.

* * *

"Hey! She's waking up!"

I groaned and sat up. "Where..."

My questions was cut short. A black blur catapulted towards me, catching me in a hug. "Koe-chwaaan! You're alright!"

Every muscle in my body tensed. "Okay, Sanji..." I growled. _Count to ten, count to ten..._ "I'm alive, now get off!"

As I tried to pry Sanji off me, someone handed me something. I stopped. "Nami!"

She smiled. "Hey! Here's your bandana."

I reached for my bandana, but I stopped. "Uhhh..." I pointed down at Sanji. "Do you have a crowbar or something?"

Nami laughed. She did a kind of sexy pose and said, "Sanji-kun..."

Sanji immediately let go and swivelled around with hearts in his eyes. "Nami-swaa-" He didn't get time to finish. I caught him by the ear. "Next time I say paws off, I mean paws off." I growled.

I took a look around. The whole place was a big party. The music and shouting was enough to give me vertigo. "Wow." I said. "I guess we won."

Nami smiled. "Yep!"

Then, Luffy landed right beside me. "Prosciutto and ham!" he shouted. I jumped about a foot in the air.

"Luffy! What are you doing?!" I yelped.

"Sanji told me there was prosciutto and ham around here!" Luffy shouted, then he ran off.

"Luffy!" I called after him. "Prosciutto _is_ ham!"

I rolled my eyes. Then, I stopped. "Hey, where are Zoro and Usopp?"

Nami chuckled. "C'mon." she said. "I'll show you."

* * *

"You're kidding..." I chuckled.

Usopp was standing on a huge pedestal, telling everyone about how he took out a mighty fishman.

"He's so full of baloney..." I chuckled.

Nami smiled. "He's not lying. You should have seen how happy he was when he told me."

I stopped. "You mean he actually beat one of Arlong's men?! Good for him!"

* * *

We passed by the hospital. There was no one there, though.

Nami frowned. "He used to be here..." she muttered.

I shrugged. "Don't worry." I said. "It's not like Zoro to stick around in a hospital." We started walking down the road. I happened to glance into an alleyway, which was pretty well lit because of the party. I stopped. "Go figure..." I laughed.

Zoro was sleeping against a tree.

I stepped up to him. He looked okay, considering the fact that he had suffered a huge injury. He had gotten stitches across his chest. I sighed in relief. At least I didn't have to heal him myself.

I bent down, and poked him in the chest.

Zoro's eyes shot open, and he jumped nearly a foot in the air, which was a pretty impressive feat considering the fact that he was on his back at the time.

"What the hell?!" he snapped.

"How can you sleep when there's a party going on?" I smirked.

"Can't you let me sleep?" he growled.

"Oh, nothing." I sighed. "It's just, Sanji was looking for you. He was asking where the stupid marimo was. I suppose I could tell him you're over here." Total lie, of course. It worked the way I wanted to, though. Zoro stomped off, growling about how he was going to kill that stupid love-cook for calling him a stupid marimo.

"He's not going to be happy with you, you know." Nami said to me, although she was working hard to burst out laughing.

* * *

The next day, Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Usopp, and I were on the deck of the Going Merry, waiting for Nami to come join us. A huge crowd had gathered, including Yosaku, Johnny, Nojiko, and a man who was covered in scars. Mr. Genzo, I think his name was. Nami had introduced us at the party the night before.

Sanji was ranting at Luffy. "Nami's not coming?!" he shouted. "Why not?!"

"Maybe it's because you're with us." Zoro muttered.

"What was that?!"

I squinted. "Hey!"

Nami was standing at the edge of the crowd. Without a word, she dashed through the crowd.

"Hey, Nami!" someone shouted.

"Let us thank you properly!"

Nami made it to the pier, and made a huge jump, landing on deck beside me.

The Merry started sailing off.

Nami smiled, then lifted her shirt. About thirty wallets clattered to the deck at her feet.

I shook my head in disbelief. "I should've known..." I chuckled.

"Why you..." Genzo muttered.

"SHE TRICKED US!"

"She hasn't changed a bit..." Usopp muttered.

"Way to go, Nami-san!" Sanji said.

Zoro rolled his eyes. "She could double-cross us again."

"Oh, probably. That's Nami for you." I said, clapping Zoro on the shoulder.

Luffy burst out laughing.

Everyone at the dock waved, shouting, "Come back soon!"

Nami waved back. "Goodbye everyone!" she shouted. "I'll be back!"

The merry sailed off. Nami stared in the direction of the island, long after we had sailed out of sight.

**So, there's chapter 29! Keep an eye out for the next chapter! LOGUETOWN! We're almost at the grand line!**

**Koe: Now you're shouting in my ear. **

**FM13: Sorry. I'm just so happy!**

**Koe: (shrugs) Please review!**


	30. Chapter 30

**Hello all you Voice readers! Here's chapter three... Times ten! Yay!**

**Koe: You know, you get waay too excited about this. **

**FM13: (pouts) Fine, just say the disclaimer. **

**Koe: Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

Chapter 30

"Ahh..." I sighed. "This is the life."

I was sitting in my room on the Merry. I had a cup of hot chocolate beside me, my book spread out on my desk, and my quill in my hand. I still had some writing to do from before. Now I also had to jot down everything that happened on the Baratie, and Arlong park. I dipped my quill in the green ink.

I was about to put my quill to the paper, when someone caught me in a hug. "Hey, Koe! What'cha doing?"

I nearly jumped out of my skin. "Luffy!" I yelped. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

Luffy pouted. "Sorry..." he said. "I just thought you'd like some company."

"Hmm." I said. Then, something occurred to me. "Hey, Luffy." I said. "Could you tell me what happened during the fights with Buggy, Kuro, and that part of the fight with Don Krieg?"

Luffy grinned. "Shishishi! Sure!"

* * *

"WHAAAT?!" I yelped. "Shanks saved Buggy's life once?!"

Luffy nodded. "Crazy, right?"

I bit my lower lip, and nodded. "Thanks. I can write a lot now."

Luffy nodded and left.

I stretched, and got ready to write. I stopped when someone knocked on my door. "Come in!" I called.

The door creaked open, and Usopp stuck his head in. "Hey." he said.

I smiled and turned around in my chair. "What's up, Usopp?" I asked.

Usopp shuffled over, looking embarrassed. "Hey, Koe... Can I talk to you for a second?"

I nodded. "Shoot."

Usopp wiped his eyes. I realised he was crying. "Hey!" I yelped. "What's going on? Why are you crying?"

Usopp blinked. "Oh, Luffy hit me while I was working on my pepper sauce star. I got some in my eyes."

His expression became more serious. "I wanted to talk to you about a... A personal matter."

I raised my eyebrows. I tried not to blush. It made me feel warm and fuzzy inside to think that Usopp had come to me for help. "What's wrong?"

"Have... Have you ever been away from home before? So far away, you don't think you'll ever go back?"

I nodded.

Usopp smacked his head with his palm. "I'm being stupid." he sighed. "Of course you've been away from home, you left your home too... There's no way you felt like that."

I put my hand on his shoulder. "Actually, I do." I said.

Usopp looked up. "What? You do?"

I nodded. "You should have seen me when I met Luffy. I was a wreck. I had no clue where I was. My brother had disappeared and I was alone in a strange place, with no idea how to speak the language. I felt so scared."

"Wait a minute..." Usopp said. "I thought Luffy was your brother."

"Yes, he is." I said. "I have another older brother named Keith. I haven't seen him in ten years."

"I don't get it." Usopp pressed. "where are you from?"

I sighed. "I'm not even from this world, Usopp." I said. "Meeting Luffy saved me."

Usopp goggled at me like I had just fallen from the sky. "You mean ... You mean you're an alien?!"

I shrugged. "I guess so." I said. "My brother and I were given these devil fruits by a lady at a fruit stand. I ate the fruit, and got hit by a semi-truck. The next thing I knew, I was in the ocean with Shanks."

Usopp frowned. "What's a semi-truck?" he asked.

I picked up a loose piece of paper, and sketched out a truck. "Here." I said. "This is a semi-truck. See right here?" I pointed to the cockpit. "That's where the people sit. These things carry supplies or produce. They're huge. They can easily kill you if they hit you."

Usopp's eyes widened. "What? And you survived?"

I shrugged. "I dunno." I said. "Anyway, enough about that. What's wrong?"

Usopp sighed. "Well..." he said. "I miss Kaya..."

I smiled. "I'm sure she's thinking of you too, Usopp."

Usopp smiled. "Thanks, Koe..." he said.

I returned the smile. "No problem, Usopp."

* * *

"There! Finished!" I shouted. I cleaned my quill off, and put the cap on the ink bottle. I had had enough of staying inside. Time to join the others on deck.

I shielded my eyes from the sun. Luffy was playing around, as usual. Nami was reading a newspaper. Usopp was sitting on the steps. Sanji was ranting about how he would protect Nami's tangerine grove. Of course, Zoro was sleeping.

I bent down and picked up a stray piece of paper off the ground. Probably a new wanted poster for some third-rate bandit or something. I took a look at it, and my heart stopped. I let the paper fall out of my hands. "Guys..." I muttered.

All activity on the ship stopped.

"Oh!"

"Oh!"

"hroonk!" Zoro snored.

"Uh-oh..."

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

It was a wanted poster. I suppose you can guess who's grinning mug was portrayed on the poster.

It said:

**WANTED**

**DEAD OR ALIVE**

**MONKEY D. LUFFY**

**30 OOO OOO BERRIES**

* * *

"Shishishishi! We're wanted dead or alive!" Luffy shouted happily. "We're worth thirty million berries!"

Usopp was grinning at Sanji. "Look! I'm on the poster too!"

I took a look. It was true. Behind Luffy's huge face and hand, was the back of Usopp's head.

"Good job, Luffy!" I said, clapping him on the shoulder.

"Oh, boy..." Nami said. "As usual, you guys don't know the severity of the situation. This is no time to be relaxing in the east blue. Especially with a bounty as high as thirty million."

"Unh..." Zoro groaned. "Hey, what's this paper?"

Zoro had obviously woken up. There was a sheet of paper on his head. When he looked at it, all the colour drained from his face. "You might want to have a look at this." He said, handing me the paper.

I looked at it, and nearly passed out. There was a blurry picture of me during the fight with Somnus.

This is what it said.

**WANTED**

**DEAD OR ALIVE**

**NAME UNKNOWN**

**25 000 000 BERRIES**

"You're kidding..." I muttered.

Before I knew it, Luffy snatched it out of my hand. "Hey! We're worth fifty five million berries!"

I pouted. "They didn't even get my name!" I complained. "If a marine sees me and actually recognises me, which will be tough because of the image quality, they'll say 'Look! It's UNKNOWN!' Seriously!"

"How did Koe-chan get a bounty when we didn't?" Sanji sulked.

I shrugged. "Somnus did say that he was only acting as an ambassador from a famous pirate crew in the new world, wherever that is. Maybe he had a bounty of his own, although you'd never guess that. The guy was so easygoing..."

Luffy clapped me on the shoulder so hard, I stumbled forward. "I knew you could do it!" he laughed. "You're so awesome!"

I blushed. "I'm not so great..." I said. "I don't even think I deserve a bounty."

"Well," Zoro said. "You did take out one of the most powerful officers in Arlong's crew. One from the new world to top it off."

"And don't forget you sank Arlong Park when Luffy destroyed the building." Nami added.

"And you survived all that abuse from Arlong." Sanji said. Then, he started to cry. "I should have protected you, Koe-chwan... I'm sorry..." he sniffled.

I rolled my eyes. "Okay, okay, I get it." I growled. "I don't need your protection all the time, Sanji."

Nami looked at the horizon. "Hey! There it is!" she said.

There was a small island, just barely visible on the horizon. "What's that island?" I asked.

"That," Nami said. "Is the entrance to the grand line." she said. There was a large stretch of land up ahead. "The island is the last island in the east blue. The town we'll be stopping at is Loguetown. It's known as the town of the beginning and the end."

I raised an eyebrow. "Why's that?"

A shadow crossed Nami's face. "It's the town where Gold Roger was born, and where he was executed."

"Oh."

Luffy laughed. He jumped onto Merry's masthead, shot his hands into the air, and shouted, "All right! Let's go to Loguetown!"

* * *

Loguetown was a small, but bustling little town. A wooden sign saying 'Loguetown' framed the entrance to the town. When we got off the ship, I frowned. "What?" I said quietly.

"What's wrong?" Luffy asked.

I placed my hand on the surface of the water. "That's weird..." I said. "The sea is different here. The east blue is normally pretty moody, but it's almost like this sea has multiple personality disorder. It's also cold, slightly sadistic, and just plain cranky. What's up with that?"

Nami smiled at my description. "I heard all the seas converge here. You must be sensing the water from the west blue, the north blue, and the south blue as well as the east blue."

I nodded.

Luffy jumped down beside me. "I'm going to see the execution scaffold!" he said, before dashing off.

Sanji ran up the road, shouting, "I'm going to buy some food! We'll need it!"

Usopp ran off saying he needed to do some shopping.

Zoro put his chin in his hand. "I need to buy something too, but..."

Nami inched towards him. "Well," she said. "I could lend you some money... At three hundred percent interest." She giggled.

She gave Zoro a wad of money. "Here's a hundred thousand berries." she said.

I thought for a moment. If Nami was charging three hundred percent interest, and she gave him a hundred thousand berries, that would mean that Zoro would have to pay three hundred thousand berries back. Ouch. It hadn't taken me long to figure out how many berries there were to a dollar. It was about a hundred berries to a dollar, so Zoro would end up owing three thousand dollars. Double ouch.

I stretched. "I think I'll go to the scaffold too." I started to walk off, but Nami grabbed me by the collar, or what collar I had.

"Not so fast." she said. "You're coming with me."

"Hey, Nami..." I pouted. "What's the big idea?"

"You need new clothes." Nami said. "How can you stand to be seen in those things? You don't even wear shoes."

I looked down at my faded brown shirt and workout pants. I couldn't see what was wrong with them. Sure the knees in my pants were ripped, and there was a rip in my shirt, but I didn't care. I wasn't used to going shopping for clothes. When I lived on Mt. Corvo with Luffy and Ace, Makino would bring us clothes every half a year. Normally, we really needed them too. Luffy and Ace grew like weeds. Not to mention the fact that we would tear them to shreds fighting bears and crocodiles and such.

I sighed, and followed Nami into the shopping district.

* * *

"You're kidding me..." I muttered.

We had passed through so many stores without buying anything. This store didn't look much different.

I stopped in front of a rack of sweaters. There was a sweater with a design I recognised. Gears. It had lots of teal gears on a cerulean background. I hadn't seen a shirt with a gear design since I was

five years old. I stared at it. _I must be losing my mind..._ I thought. I took the sweater off the rack.

Nami helped me pick out more clothes. In the end, I chose a sleeveless hazel shirt, blue jeans, and a pair of sandals.

"Aaahhh... That was fun!" Nami said, stretching. She was carrying a large bag of clothes.

I rolled my eyes. How could just walking around looking at clothes be so exhausting? "Hey, Nami..." I said. "Can I go see the scaffold now?"

Nami glared at me. "You need to get out of those rags first."

* * *

"I haven't worn shoes in so long..." I muttered. I was fooling with my sandals while walking through the streets. Nami had finally let me go after fussing with my hair and telling me not to buy socks to wear with my sandals.

I was looking up and down the road, taking in all the sights. Unfortunately, looking at the sights doesn't mean looking where you're going. I bumped into someone much smaller than me. I looked down. It was a little girl. She had been holding a large ice cream cone, with five scoops of ice cream, which was now all over my new jeans.

The little girl's eyes filled with tears. "M-my ice cream..." she sniffled. "Not again..."

A man ran up to us. "Oh!" he said. "I'm so sorry! Please forgive her!"

I got down to the little girl's level. "Sorry about that." I said. "I wasn't looking where I was going. Here." I handed her a coin. "Go and get some more ice cream. Make sure no one makes that kind of mistake again." I said.

The little girl grinned. "Thanks!" she said happily.

I nodded. "No problem! Take it easy!"

* * *

"Crap. I'm pretty sure I've been in this alleyway before." I grumbled. I had been walking around town for over an hour, and I was hopelessly lost.

I took a look around. There was a shop sign a few feet away. "Maybe I should ask whoever works there." I said.

The door was so dusty and rusty that I wondered if anyone worked there anymore. But the door swung open with a creak. The inside was musty and the air smelled stale. It looked like no one had come here in a while. Although there were some footprints in the dust on the floor. Okay, someone was just here, no one bothered to clean.

"Hello there." someone said, making me jump. Standing behind the counter was a small old man with white hair. "What can I do for such a fine young lady?"

"Uh..." I said. "I was looking for the execution scaffold. I was wondering if you could tell me where it is."

The man nodded. "Lots of people doing that today, eh?" he said. "I had a young man come in here just a little over an hour ago with the same question."

I stiffened. "Really?" I said. "Was he wearing a straw hat?"

The old man nodded. "A boy who looked up to Roger."

I frowned. "Roger? Gold Roger?"

The man nodded.

I looked around. The walls were covered in wanted posters. All of them were of Gold Roger.

"You can take one of those if you like." he said. "That one on the left is a really old one."

"Thanks..." I said.

The old man gave me a chipped tooth grin. "By the way, the scaffold is in the centre of town. If you turn left when you leave my bar and make a right you'll make it there in five minutes."

I thanked the old man, and left.

* * *

"Honestly, how hard can this possibly be?" I growled. I was lost again! I hate to admit it, but I was horrible at taking directions. My sense of direction wasn't amazing. Oh well, at least I'm better at navigating a city than Zoro.

I decided to run. When in doubt, start running. Of course, I had to crash into someone.

"Ouch..." I muttered. "Oh!"

The man I'd crashed into was sitting in front of me, rubbing his rear. "Watch where you're going, kid." he said. He looked pretty intimidating. He had a box jaw, grey hair, and huge muscles. He was pretty big, too.

I coughed.

The guy was smoking two cigars, so he was surrounded in smoke.

I hated smoke. I had lived with Dadan for ten years. As a result, I hated the smell of smoke. Cigars smelled even worse than Dadan's cigarettes.

"Sorry." I muttered. Then, a thought occurred to me. "Hey, do you know how to get to the centre of town?" I asked.

The man nodded, although he didn't stop glaring at me. "It's just over there." He pointed behind him. "It's a five minute walk."

My face brightened. "Hey, thanks man!" I said. I clapped him on the shoulder as I passed.

"Hey-"

I turned.

"How did you?"

I waited for him to finish his sentence.

I thought the guy was going to say something, but he stopped himself. "You're welcome..." he said.

I nodded and dashed towards the centre of town.

"All right! Time to find the execution scaffold!"

**Koe: Am I seriously the last one here?! Arrgh... Oh! Please review! **


	31. Chapter 31

**Hello, all you Voice readers! This chapter is the last chapter of the east blue arc! Yay!**

**Koe: Man, we've been through so much!**

**Luffy: I can't wait!**

**Koe: Neither can I! So, for all you people who read the disclaimer, frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece, or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

Chapter 31

I got to the execution scaffold just in time, it would seem. There was a huge group of pirates surrounding the scaffold.

I screeched to a halt. I thought I recognised the pirates from somewhere. "Oh."

Buggy. Go figure. It had to be him. He was standing on the execution scaffold, talking to... Do I even need to say it?

"How the hell did Luffy end up on the scaffold?" I muttered.

I got the feeling that Luffy was in imminent danger. I had to get Buggy's attention.

I put my hands on either side of my mouth, and took a deep breath. "**BIG NOSE**!"

My voice echoed through the town square.

Buggy turned his head around as if it were on a ratchet. I swear I could hear it clicking. "What. Did. You. Say. You. Brat?!" he shouted. His voice went up an octave every time he clipped off his words.

I smirked. It worked like a charm.

Luffy grinned. "Hey, Koe!" he shouted. "help me out here!" he said.

A beautiful lady in a pink cloak covered in hearts turned and glared at me. "Well, if it isn't Luffy's tagalong." she said. "What are you doing here?"

I clenched my fist. "Who's a tagalong?" I growled. "And who the hell are you? I don't think I've ever met you before."

The lady smiled again. "I'm surprised you don't recognise me. I'm sure I do look a little different... My freckles are gone!"

"Uhh..." I tapped my chin. "Still doesn't ring a bell..."

"Tell me!" the woman shouted to the crowd around her, raising her arms. "Who is the most beautiful woman on the seas?!"

"You are!" the crowd roared. "Lady Alvida!"

I stopped. "Where's Alvida?" I asked, looking around. I couldn't see hide nor hair of the dumpy pirate lady.

"I'm right here!" the lady snapped.

I looked her over. "You're kidding." I said. "No way you're Alvida."

"Oh, yes I am!" she said. "By the way, If Luffy had survived, I would make him my man." she said.

I bit back my annoyance. I was okay with my brother being in a romantic relationship, and I didn't mind if a girl had a crush on him... But Alvida? No way. Not a hope.

I considered my options. There was no way Alvida could lose so much weight in such a short time. She must have eaten a devil fruit... But what kind? "Well." I said to myself, dashing forward. "Only one way to find out."

Alvida did a kind of sexy pose. "I partook of the Slip-" She didn't have time to finish her sentence. I caught her in the jaw with the strongest punch I could manage, which was a lot. She went flying.

Everyone stared.

"How did she hit her?!"

"Lady Alvida's skin cannot be marred by any attack! How did that skinny kid do that?!"

I pulled at the bandana tying my hair back. "Right." I said. "You stay away from my brother, witch."

Alvida's face went from white to purple, although that might have been from the bruise that was rapidly spreading across her cheek. "W-why you..." she spluttered.

I stepped past her and walked up to the scaffold. "Hey, Luffy!" I called. "Can't you go without causing trouble for an hour?" I stopped when I realised how stupid that sounded. Of course he can't keep himself out of trouble for more than ten minutes. He's Luffy.

"Stop right there, brat!" Buggy shouted. "If you don't want Strawhat's head to roll ahead of schedule!"

I stopped. "Luffy's head to roll?" I asked. "You're crazy! There's no way you could kill him, you know. Besides, what would you do? You know this place is crawling with marines."

Buggy turned as red as his nose. "I can and I will!" He raised a large sword. "Any last words, Strawhat?"

Luffy took a deep breath and shouted, "I WILL BE KING OF THE PIRATES!"

The crowd gasped.

"King of the pirates?"

"He has the nerve to say it in this town?"

"What a dreamer!"

I grinned. "Damn right! And there's no way I'm going to let you execute my brother, Buggy!" I dashed forward, calling on whatever water I could sense. A drop of something hit my nose. Rain. Perfect.

I was almost there, when I heard someone call, "STOP THE EXECUTION!"

"Zoro! Sanji!" I called. "Give me a hand here!"

Buggy smirked. "So, you've come, Zoro!" he said. "You're all too late though! Your captain is dead!"

Luffy looked up. "Koe! Zoro! Sanji! Usopp! Nami!" he called. "Sorry! I'm dead!" He grinned and laughed.

"Damn it!" Zoro shouted.

"Don't talk crazy!" Sanji shouted.

"Luffy!" I couldn't let this happen! I had to knock down the tower!

Suddenly, the air crackled. The smell of ozone filled the air. In a blinding flash of light, lightning struck the scaffold.

I tumbled out of the way as the scaffold creaked, groaned, and toppled over. A few feet away, Buggy hit the ground. He was charred. I winced. That must have hurt.

From the wreckage, Luffy stood up. "Shishishi! Whaddya know?" he laughed. "I'm still alive!"

I jumped up and caught him in a hug. "You had me really scared, you idiot." I sniffed.

Luffy grinned and patted my shoulder. "I'm fine! Can you believe it? I thought I was dead for sure!"

Sanji and Zoro stepped up.

"Do you believe in a higher power?" Sanji asked, relief evident in his voice.

Zoro snorted. "Don't be ridiculous."

I bent down and handed Luffy his hat. "Let's get outta here. We won't be in the clear until we're back on the Merry and sailing away."

Suddenly the clopping of footsteps filled the square. Marines. At least a hundred of them. Why did it have to be now? "Surround the square and capture the pirates!"

"All right!" Luffy grabbed my hand. With a tug, Luffy darted off, dragging me along behind. "RUN FOR IT!"

* * *

We ran through the streets, a battalion of forty or fifty marines right behind us. Rain pelted down in a solid sheet. The wind whistled in my ears.

Luffy kept running, pulling on my hand. "Run, run, run, run!" he shouted, grinning like a maniac.

I managed to open my eyes slightly, squinting against the rain. "Luffy!" I shouted. "Marines at twelve o'clock!"

Sure enough, another unit of marines had blocked our path. There was a young woman at the head of the unit. "Stop right there!" she shouted.

Luffy stopped so fast, I crashed into his back. "Luffy..." I grumbled, rubbing my nose.

"Hey!" Sanji said, ogling at the lady. "She's pretty cute!"

"Aw, crap." Zoro muttered. "Her."

The lady had a look in her eyes that kind of reminded me of the thunderstorm that was raging. That look was directed mainly at Zoro, I noticed. "You lied to me..." she said, in a quiet, but dangerous voice.

I jumped out of the way as Sanji kicked at Zoro. "Zoro!" he snapped. "How dare you lie to her!?"

Zoro jumped back. "I didn't lie to her!" he protested.

The lady was so angry she was shaking with rage. "You didn't tell me you were Roronoa Zoro." she said. "I will defeat you and take those famous blades from you!"

I looked back and forth between them. Famous blades? Then, I happened to notice that Zoro had two new swords at his side. One was his white sword, of course. The second one was a black hilted sword with a strange looking guard. Why did that sword make me feel uneasy?

The last one was also black, but without an evil aura. It looked like it was in a lot better condition, too. The scabbard was well polished, and even in the dim light and the driving rain, it gleamed like it was in the sun.

Zoro stepped forward, frowning. "I don't remember ever saying my name wasn't Zoro." he said to the lady. "I didn't tell you anything." He drew his sword. "Luffy! You guys go! I'll handle these people."

Luffy nodded. "Let's go!"

* * *

"Hey, Luffy, are you sure this is the right way?" I called over the roar of the storm.

Luffy looked back at me. "Nope!" he said, with a huge grin.

I facepalmed. "Hey!" I noted. "We missed the turn!"

We doubled back and turned down a small alleyway, onto the main road. We kept running.

Suddenly, I felt a surge behind me. Something dangerous was behind us, gaining on us fast. I called on the rain, creating two watery whips. I focussed, and caught Luffy and Sanji around the ankles. Both of them tripped. I hit the road too, just as a billowing cloud of grey smoke flew over our heads.

When I looked up again, the buff guy I'd crashed into before was standing over us, smoke swirling around him.

"So." he said, glaring at Luffy. "You're Monkey D. Luffy."

Luffy looked up and grinned. "Yep! That's me!"

The man gave Sanji and I a once-over. "And these two are members of your crew."

Luffy nodded.

I felt a cold feeling run down my spine, like someone had just dumped ice down my back. The world snapped into black. Our auras flickered into light. I shivered. This man's smokey grey aura was shining very bright.

I blinked the vision out of my eyes, and everything snapped back to normal.

I stood up and stepped between Luffy and the smoke guy. "I suppose you're the marine captain of this branch unit." I said.

The man nodded. "I am marine captain Smoker."

I bit back a laugh. A guy who smokes cigars named Smoker? Oh boy.

Luffy grinned. "What's up?"

What's up? Luffy was greeting a marine, so an enemy, like he had just run into a friend at the corner store.

Apparently Smoker didn't appreciate the comment either. "I will never let you leave this town!"

Luffy jumped up. "Hey, Sanji!" he said. "Go to the ship! Tell them to take off!"

Sanji nodded. He turned and dashed away.

Smoker turned to go after him. "Hold it!" he growled.

I called on the rain, and said, "Junsai."

The raindrops condensed into a high current wall of water, blocking Smoker's path. "You've still got us to deal with."

Smoker growled. "You have sealed your fate now." he said menacingly. He dashed towards us, his legs turning to smoke.

Luffy stepped in front of me. He stretched his arm back. "Gum-Gum... Pistol!" He hit Smoker straight in the face. Instead of smashing his nose in like it should have, it passed right through him.

Suddenly, Smoker disappeared in a cloud of smoke, which surrounded us.

I looked around. "Luffy! This guy ate a Logia fruit! He can't be hit by brute force attacks!"

Smoker's voice filled the air around us. "That's right. I ate the Plume-Plume fruit. I can become smoke." He caught Luffy by the neck and shoved him to the ground. "I am known as 'White Chase' Smoker for a reason." He eyed Luffy with disgust, then looked at me as if daring me to attack, although it was hard to tell because of the rain. I almost thought he looked wary of me, although I wasn't sure why.

"The higher-ups were in a generous mood when they gave you your bounty, it would seem." he said to Luffy. "You'll never make it to the grand line."

I struggled against the smoke. It seemed Smoker was paying more attention to Luffy, so he wasn't giving me much thought. I could move almost freely. I knew it was pointless, but I dashed towards Smoker. It seemed useless, but I punched at Smoker's head.

To my surprise, I hit him square in the cheek, and actually hit him. I managed to hit him so hard he let go of Luffy. Fortunately, I managed to distract him from killing my brother. Unfortunately, I had sent Smoker after me.

I was surrounded by smoke. Now, I hate smoke for a few good reasons. Whenever I was bad, and when she could catch me, Dadan would tie me up in that small bedroom and sit there with me, smoking her horrible cigarettes. She didn't even open a window. Not to mention the fact that I hate the smell anyway.

Smoker caught me by the neck this time. "I heard about a new pirate who could manipulate water, however the wanted poster didn't give much information. They didn't know your name."

I coughed from the smoke. "So I noticed." I coughed. My eyes stung and my lungs burned.

I tried to pry Smoker's hands off my neck, but they passed right through his wrists.

Smoker frowned. "Looks like you just got a lucky shot." he said.

My ears were ringing, but I heard Luffy shout, "Let go of my sister, Smoke-guy!" He caught Smoker by surprise, and he barely had time to turn into smoke. He let go of me, but he kicked me in the stomach, sending me flying down the street, crashing into a building.

"Ouch..." I muttered, rubbing the bleeding knot that had formed on my head. Then, I saw something that nearly gave me a heart attack. Smoker had restrained Luffy again, and had his hand on a jutte on his back.

"Luffy!" I shouted.

Suddenly, the storm became even fiercer. Someone grabbed Smoker's hand. I couldn't see what he looked like, because he was covered in a dark green cloak. I could only see one thing. A big red tatoo on the left side of his face. "Now, now." he said in a deep voice. "It's not the time yet."

Smoker looked around and growled. "What are you doing here... Dragon?!"

Luffy managed to get away from Smoker's hold. He dashed up to me, and hauled me onto my feet. "C'mon, Koe!" he shouted. "Let's get out of here!"

I tried to run with him, but I had a hard time focussing. I was still pretty dazed from being launched into a building.

We passed a building I recognised. The old pub. Something wasn't right. "Luffy! We missed our turn!"

Luffy stopped so suddenly I crashed into him. "Oops! Let's go!" He dashed down the street.

I followed him to the side of the village.

* * *

When we reached the side of the village, I realised we were about half a kilometre from the pier.

The Merry was right below us. I mean almost two hundred feet below us. The two hundred foot high battlements were armed with cannons, cannons, and more cannons. Not exactly an easy getaway.

"Well." I said bleakly, looking down at the Merry. "That's convenient, I guess."

Luffy nodded. "Right!" He picked me up bridal style. "Let's go!"

I felt my blood turn to ice. "Luffy," I said, trying to get out of his grip. "I don't think that's a good idea. It's a very long dro-AAAAAHHHH!"

Luffy had jumped, of course.

I don't think I've ever mentioned this, but heights just aren't my thing. Hey, I fell from the sky when I was five years old. Not exactly something that would make me overconfident about heights.

Luffy laughed like a maniac as we fell.

I kept a death grip around Luffy's neck and kept my eyes screwed shut, hoping to any kind of higher power that we wouldn't hit the water.

We hit the deck with a thud. I didn't open my eyes for a little while.

"Hey, Koe." Luffy said quietly. "We're back on the Merry."

I opened my eyes.

Everyone was there. Sanji had obviously made it, and Zoro had survived his fight with the marine lady, although he looked a bit shaken, for some reason.

Luffy took a deep breath. "SET SAIL!" he shouted.

I climbed up the mast, grabbed the rope, and with Zoro's help, unfurled the sail. The strong winds caught the sails, and we shot away at a ripping rate, leaving Loguetown far behind.

* * *

"We're on our way!" Luffy laughed.

"Hey!" Nami said, dragging an empty barrel from storage.

I tried not to flinch at the memory of being trapped in a barrel with Luffy when we started our journey. Jeez, even the memory still gave me the shivers.

"It's tradition to break a barrel before sailing on a new sea." she said.

Luffy grinned. He put his sandalled foot on top of the barrel. "I will be king of the pirates."

Zoro clunked his foot on the barrel beside him. "I will be the world's greatest swordsman."

Nami put her foot on the barrel next to Zoro. "I will draw a map of the whole world."

Beside her, Sanji put his foot down. "I will find the all blue."

Usopp paused before placing his foot down. "I guess I'm going... To become a great warrior of the sea!"

I was last. I put my foot on the barrel, and took a deep breath. "I'm going to find my brother, Keith, and I'm going to record our journey to the end."

Luffy grinned. "We're going to accomplish our ambitions on this sea!"

We lifted our feet and smashed the barrel into the deck.

We all shouted to the sea. "WE'RE GOING... TO THE GRAND LINE!"

**Koe: We're off to the grand line! Thanks to all of those who have stuck with us from the beginning! I hope you'll keep rooting for us!**

**Luffy: Here! Meat for all!**

**Koe: (sweatdrops) You raided Frosty's fridge again, didn't you?**

**Luffy: Ah, Frosty won't mind. I only took the meat.**

**FM13: (evil aura) I won't mind, eh?**

**Luffy: (all the colour drains from his face) Frosty... You look scary.**

**Koe: (bursts out laughing) I think you'd better run, Luffy.**

**Luffy: Good idea! (runs away)**

**FM13: You're going to pay for this!**

**Koe: (snorts) Anywho... Please review! Look forward to our outrageous adventures on the grand line!**


	32. Chapter 32

**Hello all you Voice readers! Here's chapter 32! Woot woot!**

**Keith: Must you get so excited about everything? **

**FM13: Oh, it's you, Keith. **

**Keith: This chapter is in my point of view, you know...**

**FM13: (blushes) Of course I knew that! I'm the author for crying out loud!**

**Akainu: (glares) Be quiet. You're giving me a migraine.**

**Keith: Sorry admiral.**

**FM13: (eye roll) Hey, Akainu. Since you're here, why don't you say the disclaimer?**

**Akainu: No. **

**FM13: Please?**

**Akainu: No. **

**(Please repeat this scene about fifty times over in your mind, since author was too lazy to type out the rest, and everyone would be bored out of their skulls.)**

**Akainu: Fine! frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of the characters! Only her OCs. There! Happy now?**

**FM13: Yep!**

**Keith: (sighs) Oh dear... **

Chapter 32

**Here's a description of Keith. **

**He has brown shoulder-length hair he ties in a ponytail. He wears a marine officer's uniform, purple gloves, and heavy combat boots. He has a medal of valour pinned to his shirt, over his heart. He has a small white scar on his lower lip. **

"Keith? Sir?"

I looked up from the pile of wanted posters I had been scanning. I was going to snap at whoever it was to leave me alone, but I stopped when I realised who it was. "Oh, hello Koby."

My pink-haired friend was looking at me uneasily. I must have been frowning. I tended to scare Koby whenever I did that, for some reason.

"Hey..." he said.

I smiled. "What's up?"

Koby shifted from foot to foot. "Well, you see..." He held up a standard marine's uniform.

I grinned and stood up. "You made it!" I exclaimed. I clapped him on the shoulder. "Welcome to our ranks, seaman Koby!"

Koby blushed and smiled. "Thank-you sir." He stopped when he saw the wanted posters in my hand. "What are you looking at?"

"Oh," I said. "I was just checking out the new wanted posters that were sent in from the east blue. On request from admiral Akainu." I flipped through the first few. "Hey, Koby. Look at this. What a crazy picture." I showed him the picture of a guy of about my age in a straw hat. He was grinning for the camera, his hand against the lens. "Monkey D. Luffy." I read. "Looks like a real goofball."

Koby's eyes lit up for a second. Then, he reasserted control. "Yeah... He does."

I looked at the bounty and frowned. "Thirty million berries?" I said. "Must be pretty tough, for someone in the east blue."

Koby nodded, but didn't say anything. What was he not telling me?

I put Monkey D. Luffy's poster down and kept flipping through the others. I stopped at a particularly vague-looking one. "What the hell is _this_?" I asked. The wanted poster's photo was blurry, so I could barely see what the bounty head looked like. The only thing I could tell from the photo was that this person was a teenaged girl, and that she had long hair. Not too much information to go on. I couldn't even see what her face looked like.

"Name unknown." I read. "This is ridiculous. With a bounty of twenty five mil don't you think her name should be found out?" I turned to the marine who had handed me the wanted posters, who had been standing silently during the whole dialogue. "Who submitted this, anyway?"

The lieutenant stiffened. "Sir! It was captain Nezumi of branch sixteen!"

I rolled my eyes. "Someone needs to talk to this captain Nezumi about his intel gathering. Honestly, and they call themselves marines."

Koby stepped forward. "Have you heard about Arlong?" he asked.

I nodded. "He was apprehended along with two other fishmen about a day ago. They were in branch sixteen's territory. We need to see to it that Nezumi is questioned about this."

The lieutenant nodded. He saluted and left the room.

I turned to Koby. "Hey, Koby."

"Yeah?"

"Are you sailing with vice-admiral Garp on his next mission?"

Koby nodded.

I smiled. "Well, I guess I might as well tell you. I will be serving under vice-admiral Garp as his second in command. I suppose we'll be sailing together for a while."

Koby grinned so widely I thought his mouth was going to fall off. "You are?!" Then he calmed down. "I mean, you are, sir?"

I smiled and nodded. "I am. And you don't need to call me 'sir' until you get that uniform on." Then I adopted a more serious expression. "Speaking of which, shouldn't you be in that uniform, sailor?"

Koby grinned. "Yes sir!" he said, before running off.

I smiled. It was nice to have a good friend at the marine base who was close to my age.

I stared at the picture of the unknown criminal. I couldn't the person too well, and there was no name. Why did it give me such an uneasy feeling?

I rolled up the wanted poster. I would give it more thought later. For now, I needed to focus on finding my sister.

_Wait for me, Koe... I will find you..._

* * *

It was a beautiful morning. There wasn't a cloud in the sky. The gulls were dive-bombing fish in the water.

I walked along the docks, breathing in the fresh air. Vice admiral Garp's warship was moored at the end of the dock.

I was about to step onto the gangplank when someone called, "Keith!"

I turned around to see Akainu. He was standing at the dock, his arms folded across his chest. "So," he said. "You're leaving, are you?"

I nodded. "I'm going to find my sister. If vice admiral Garp's unit is heading in the direction of the east blue, it's the best chance I have." I bowed. "Thank-you for everything you've done over the years. Your training has saved my life many times."

Akainu smiled. "You have been a good student." he said. "A teacher's advice can only go so far for someone who doesn't listen. Go and find your sister."

I grinned. "Thank-you, father... I will not fail."

Akainu's expression became more serious. "If you remember your training, commander, you won't. Do not fail in your duties as vice admiral Garp's second in command."

I straightened and saluted. "I will not, admiral."

Akainu nodded and walked away.

I sighed. I considered Akainu my father, but it wasn't exactly an extremely familial relationship. I always had such a hard time telling what he was thinking. He was a marine through and through, though. A natural leader.

I sighed. "Note to self: When you find Koe, tell her not to mention what she had said about wanting to become a pirate to that fruit saleslady ten years ago. Father might go berserk."

"Hey! Keith!"

"Are you coming, Keith?"

Koby and Helmeppo's voices pulled me out of my moment of thought. They were both leaning over the side rail, staring at me intently.

"Yeah, I'm coming!" I called.

Someone clapped their hand on my shoulder. I turned to see vice admiral Garp. "Hey, c'mon on board!" he laughed. "We can have some rice crackers!"

I laughed. Garp was such a goof.

I stopped. His name was Monkey D. Garp... I couldn't remember... Where had I heard the name Monkey D. before? I could almost put my finger on it. I knew I had read it somewhere, not very long ago at all. It was so annoyingly close, but so annoyingly far out of reach too.

I shrugged and followed vice admiral Garp on board.

* * *

I stared at the waves breaking from the bow. Koby and Helmeppo were beside me.

I closed my eyes, and breathed in the salty sea air.

Suddenly, Koby cried out. "What's that?!" he yelped.

I opened an eye. It was a neptunian. A hundred-foot long monster with huge fangs, small, evil eyes, and thick, green scaled hide.

I grinned. "Relax." I said. "I can handle it."

I jumped on top of the rail, and stared the monster straight in the face. "Hey, ugly!" I called. "You want to eat this warship? Here's an appetizer!" I spread my arms, and my wrists caught fire.

The monster recoiled at the sight of the light green flames that were my wrists.

I jumped. My legs turned to fire, and I flew across the small stretch of water towards the neptunian. "Here you go!" I said. My fist turned to fire, and I hit him square in the jaw. I concentrated, and... YES! I could sense the monster's soul flame. I made a grabbing motion. My devil fruit could cause burns to the flesh, but I could also damage a creature's soul, shortening their lives by as much as five years. This only affected things like neptunians. I couldn't do it to humans yet.

"Soul flare."

A fire erupted in the neptunian's mouth. It let out a horrible cry, and sank beneath the waves, smoke billowing from it's mouth and nostrils.

Koby and Helmeppo stared at me, completely speechless. When Helmeppo finally found his voice, he said, "That... was terrifying, sir."

I grinned and flashed him the peace sign. "That was one of my stronger attacks! I'm going to need all the strength I have to navigate the grand line."

Koby nodded. "Let's give this journey our all!"

"Bwa-hahahahaha! That's the spirit!"

We all jumped about a foot in the air. "Oh! Vice admiral Garp..." I said, my ears turning pink from embarrassment. "We didn't see you coming..."

"All right... Let's go!"

**So, the grand line travels begin next chapter! Look forward to it, people!**

**Keith: I take it this will be the last chapter in my point of view for a while...**

**FM13: Sorry Keith. I'm sure lots of our readers will look forward to the next one!**

**Keith: Fine. If you'll excuse me, I've got some things to do. **

**FM13: Fine. Please review!**

**Koby: (waterfall tears) Guys... You forgot me again... **


	33. Chapter 33

**Hey, all you Voice readers! Sorry for the hiatus... Well, one of my longer ones, anyway.**

**Luffy: YAY! LET'SGOLET'SGOLET'SGO!**

**Koe: (covers her ears) Frosty, do something!**

**FM13: Hey, Luffy! There's meat in the fridge!**

**Luffy: Oh, Yeah! (dashes off)**

**Koe: ... Thanks. So, everyone, frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters! Only her OCs. **

Chapter 33

"If we keep this up, we'll make it to the Grand Line in no time!" Nami called from the upper deck.

"No kidding!" I said. I was up the mast, struggling to keep the sail from flying off the mast. The combination of my fear of heights and the driving rain impairing my vision was making my job very, very hard. I blinked the rain out of my eyes. There was too much of it for me to control it. Not to mention the fact that I'd have to use my arms, and they, as well as my hands, were very occupied trying to keep the sail in check. I suppose I could have let go for a second, but I wasn't sure if the sail would hold, and I didn't fancy losing my balance and falling off, either.

It took a long time, but I managed to secure the mast from the top. I leaned over as far as I dared and shouted, "Moss-ball! You secured the bottom yet?"

Zoro, who had been wrestling with the sail from the deck, looked up and called, "Has been for a while! What took you so long?"

I bit back a scathing remark. He had no idea how cold and wet it was up there, not to mention the fact that I could barely see, _and_ I was afraid of falling off the mast. I would have done the deck job, but it involved muscling against the mast with a length of rope. I wasn't strong enough to do that, and Zoro wasn't nimble enough to do the mast job.

Sanji and Usopp were manning the rudder. Another job that took some strength, but Zoro and I were outside in the driving rain, while they were inside. I swear they were laughing their dry asses off right now.

Nami was outside too, but she had a large rain jacket on. Not to mention the fact that she had an umbrella. Not that it would do her much good. Point is, she was dry too.

Luffy was wet, but he was sitting on Merry's head, laughing like a maniac. I wasn't so miffed about this, because Luffy would probably be next to useless when it came to the sail.

The sail secured, I grabbed the rigging to descend to the deck.

The annoying thing about wet rope is, no matter how careful you are, it has an annoying habit of being able to trip you up. Or in my case, be so slippery that you lose all your holds but your left hand, dangling about twenty feet over the deck. Naturally, I was trying very hard to keep it together.

"Zoro!" I called. "Can you give me a hand?"

Zoro looked up at me, squinting from the driving rain. "Why don't you just drop?" he called back.

"Uhhh..." I said, trying to find an acceptable excuse without sounding like a total wimp. "I'm stuck."

Zoro raised an eyebrow. "You're stuck." he repeated calmly. I saw a smirk play across his lips. "You look scared, you know." he said. "If you don't like hanging there, just drop."

"I can't!" I said, close to panic.

"Why the hell not?"

There was a long pause.

"Well?"

I screwed my eyes shut and decided to bite the bullet. Luffy was the only other person outside now, and he already knew. "I'm afraid of heights, okay?!"

It was a few seconds before Zoro responded, which felt like an eternity to me. There was nothing but the sound and feel of the rain beating down on me. Finally, Zoro broke the silence. "You're afraid of heights?! Seriously?!" he laughed. "You're such a riot, Koe!"

I felt my cheeks prickle with embarrassment. "Just help me out here, you moss-brained-"

"No need to call me names." Zoro said, regaining control of his laughter. "Just drop. I'll catch you." He must have seen the sceptical look I was giving him, because he laughed again. "Just do it."

I shivered. I didn't have much more strength left. I counted to three... One... _There's no way I can do this. It's too high up! _Two... _What if he doesn't catch me? Relax already!_ Three... _Let go of the damn rigging already!_

I let go. I fell towards the deck.

Zoro stood there, then he stepped aside.

I registered this just in time. I landed on my feet, like a cat, absorbing the impact by bending my knees.

Zoro stepped up to me, smirking. "Told you you could do it." he said.

_I AM SO GOING TO DROWN HIM!_

I glared at him. "What the hell?!" I snarled.

Zoro shrugged. "You know what they always say. The curse can be the cure."

I narrowed my eyes until I was squinting at Zoro through the rain. "You'd better not have any plans to have a family, moron..." I growled in english.

"What?" Zoro said, cocking his head.

I shrugged. "Oh, nothing." I said. "I hope you didn't treat Kuina like that." I said.

I hit a weak spot. BIG time. Zoro stopped short. "How- How do you know about Kuina?!" he demanded.

I shrugged nonchalantly. "Oh, nothing... It's just you were talking in your sleep a few days ago, and I learned some pretty interesting stuff..."

Zoro's pupils contracted.

I smirked. I had him now.

Of course, the interesting stuff was a complete lie. All I heard was the name, Kuina, but revenge is a dish best served cold.

"Oh, nothing..." I said. I turned on my heels and walked to the warm kitchen, Zoro not too far behind, saying stuff like, "What the hell did you learn, anyway?!"

My only response was looking over my shoulder, and giving him my sweetest smile.

* * *

"This is an amazing tailwind." I said. "Oh, thank-you." Sanji had put down a cup of tea in front of me.

Sanji grinned. "If you need anything else, Koe-chan, just ask."

I rolled my eyes. "Or I'll walk two paces to the fridge."

Sanji pouted. "Don't be like that..."

Now, I had been putting up with Sanji for almost a week, and I could put up with his constant flirting, slightly... under normal circumstances. Right now, however, I was freezing and tired, not to mention the fact that I had just fallen from the rigging. It was all I could do to not smack Sanji upside the head.

Fortunately, Nami came to my rescue. She fluttered her eyelashes at Sanji, and said, "Oh, Sanji-kun... My tea is a little too bitter. Could you make me a new one?"

Sanji whipped around, hearts in his eyes. "Yes! Nami-swaaan!"

I flashed a look at Nami, who smiled at me.

_I owe you one._ I mouthed.

Nami winked.

Then, the door opened. Luffy stuck his head in. He was grinning like a maniac. "We're there!"

Everyone jumped up, and flew out the door.

I wasn't too happy to be back in the driving rain, but what I saw was well worth a faceful of rain.

_Look again._ my brain said.

_We're looking. _my eyes insisted. _But we don't understand what we see._

"Reverse mountain..." Nami said, mystified. "It's amazing."

I agreed, although I was at a loss for words.

A couple hundred feet in front of us, Reverse Mountain rose through the fog. It's dark shadow loomed over us even in the fog and the rain. It was as if it was sending us a message. Daring us to try to enter the grand line. That, however, wasn't what made me think I was hallucinating. There was a large river flowing _**up**_ the mountain.

"That's the river we have to take over the mountain!" Nami called.

Luffy's eyes sparkled. "_Over_ the mountain?! Sweet!"

Usopp stepped up beside me and squinted through the fog. "Hey, if we have to take that river, we have to make it _without_ smashing to bits on the rocks."

The mouth of the river was rimmed with lots of very pointy rocks. And the mouth was very, very small.

"What do you suppose the chances of not getting smashed are, Koe?" Usopp asked me.

I frowned. "Well, judging by the strength of the current, I think we need to hit it right at the zero degree."

Usopp paled. "You mean, if we're off by even a degree we'll be smashed to bits?!" he yelped.

Luffy clung to Merry's head, laughing. "THIS IS AWESOME!"

I rolled my eyes. Then, I froze. "Nami! We're caught in the current!" I shouted. "If we don't raise the sail, we'll crash!"

Nami sprang into action. "Sanji! Usopp! Man the rudder!" she shouted.

Sanji jumped up and saluted. "Yes, Nami-swaan!"

Usopp yelped something to the extent of, "I don't want to die like this!" before following Sanji inside.

"Zoro! You and Luffy raise the sail!"

Zoro grumbled something about not taking orders from her, but he did as he was told.

Luffy also jumped into action.

Nami turned to me. "I need you to manipulate the current so we don't get ourselves killed."

I blanched. "Nami, that current is way too strong for me to control!" I said. "You might as well try to fly the way you are now!"

Nami shook her head. "I just need you to make subtle changes that can change our course." she said. "I know you can do that."

I nodded. I took off my sweater, and tied it around my waist, letting the rain fall on my bare arms. Unlike other devil fruit users, I was only weak in the sea. Rain like this gave me strength. I took a deep breath, and tweaked a muscle.

The current changed slightly.

Merry lurched a bit to the left.

Another twitch.

Another current switch.

Another lurch.

This went on for another few minutes.

Suddenly, there was another huge lurch. Merry had been caught in the great current of the mountain stream. We hadn't been smashed on the rocks.

I collapsed to the deck, exhausted. I took a deep breath, enjoying the feel of the rain and the sea spray on my skin.

We were picking up speed. The boards creaked and groaned.

I felt someone take my arm and pull me to my feet. "Hey, Koe!" I heard Luffy laugh. "Look at this!"

We were at the top of the mountain. We were thrown in the air! It was such a beautiful scene. I opened my eyes as much as the wind would allow. I grinned. "YAA-HOOOO!" I shouted.

All of a sudden, we hit the river on the other side. The current was so strong, Merry skipped along like a skipping stone.

I grinned, holding Luffy's hand. Then, my jaw dropped. I felt as if someone had punched me in the gut. We were headed straight for the dark hole of a giant _**whale.**_

**There you have it! Chapter 33! **

**Koe: A whale?! What on earth are you thinking?!**

**FM13: I'm just following the story... Don't complain. **

**Koe: (rolls her eyes) **

**Please review!**


	34. Chapter 34

**Hey all you Voice readers! The Reverse Mountain arc begins!**

**Luffy: I want to get to the Grand Line! Hurry up!**

**Koe: (cuffs him upside the head) Don't be rude! Frosty's the one writing this story! **

**FM13: Thank-you. **

**Luffy: I'm sorry. **

**FM13: No problem. You guys have one more challenge before then. (smirks evilly)**

**Koe: This doesn't happen to have anything to do with that giant whale gob in the last chapter, does it?**

**FM13: Just you wait. **

**Luffy: (jumps up) Okay then! frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters! Only her OCs!**

Chapter 34

Now, I knew what it was like being in the mouths of large animals. I had been nearly swallowed by a crocodile when I was five. I had never been actually swallowed, though.

We had been skipping along the river, when we had sailed straight into the whale's mouth. At least, I thought it was a whale. I didn't have much time to register what it was before we were in it's mouth. Everything went dark. I had the sense that we were falling through nothingness. I didn't let go of Luffy's hand.

There was nothing but a rushing noise, then we were swallowed by light. LIGHT!

There was a faint splash.

I blinked from the sudden change in light. We were underneath what looked like a blue sky.

Merry bobbed up and down in what looked a bit like brown water.

I frowned. I couldn't sense what it was. I walked to the side of the ship. I couldn't control whatever it was.

I dug into my pocket, and fished out a large piece of pocket lint. "Eugh..." I muttered. "How did I manage to get that much lint in the pockets of new pants?" I took the ball of lint and tossed it in... whatever it was.

Immediately it was swallowed by the liquid. The lint sizzled and dissolved.

"I knew it..." I muttered. "Stomach acid."

Nami, Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji stepped up beside me. "Stomach acid, you said?" Zoro said, interested.

"We were eaten!" Usopp yelped. He and Nami grabbed onto each other and screamed, "NOOOO!"

"Shut up!" Zoro snapped. He ducked to avoid one of Sanji's kicks. The two of them started fighting.

I felt irritation crawl all over me like an army of termites. "WILL YOU ALL SHUT UP?!" I snapped.

They all stopped short. Even Zoro and Sanji stopped fighting and stared at me in disbelief.

I gave the ship a quick once-over. Everything seemed to be in order, except one little thing.

"Where's Luffy?" I asked.

The others seemed to notice this for the first time, too.

"Where the hell is that rubbery idiot?" Zoro growled.

"Took the words right out of my mouth..." I muttered.

Nami tapped her chin, thinking. "You don't suppose he didn't get eaten by the whale, do you?" she asked.

"Maybe he can get us out!" Usopp said.

I laughed. "Maybe.

Suddenly, a sickening thought occurred to me. I leaned over the rail and stared at the Merry's sides. There were tiny burn marks forming on the hull. "Son of a-" I muttered.

Usopp looked over my shoulder. His eyes widened. "Oh no! Merry!" He would have jumped over the side to check the damage if I hadn't grabbed him by the back of his overalls.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." I said after Sanji and Zoro helped me haul him up.

Usopp blushed.

"So." I said. "What are we going to do about Luffy?"

Before anyone could answer, someone called, "Hello there!"

I looked over the side, and nearly had a heart attack. Someone else was in with us.

Floating beside the Merry was a small island. There was a very old man sitting on a lawn chair, staring at us curiously. He was rather stocky, and he had a bald spot on top of his head. What little hair he had was pure white. He had large, petal-like things sprouting from the sides of his head. His lower lip was a whole hell of a lot larger than the top one. He wore a pink shirt with a yellow and green horizontal stripe across the belly, and beach shorts. His glasses were halfway down his nose. He had a seaweed necklace around his neck.

He gave us a very suspicious look. "Who on earth are you kids?" he asked.

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Who are you, ossan?" I asked. "What are you doing inside a whale's stomach?"

The old man didn't answer. Instead, he took up a newspaper, and began to read.

Sanji said, "What's your name, old man?"

The old man still ignored us.

A huge tick mark graced Sanji's forehead. "WELL?!" he roared.

Zoro stepped in front of them. "Excuse me," he said, reasonably. "Who are you?"

The old man raised an eyebrow. "It's common courtesy to introduce yourselves first." he said. Before Zoro could say anything, however, he added,"I'm Crocus. I'm the lighthouse keeper of Twin Cape, blood type AB, Gemini."

"What the hell?!" Zoro shouted.

I was having trouble breathing, I was laughing so hard.

Usopp jumped. "I-If you're looking for a fight, ossan, we'll give you one!" He looked at me as if to say, that's your cue, pal.

Crocus just laughed. "Don't do it. If you do, someone will die."

We all stopped short at that.

After a few minutes, I decided to change the subject. "Why are you inside a whale's stomach, Crocus-ossan?" I asked.

Crocus shrugged. "I have my reasons. Besides, this isn't an ordinary whale."

"I noticed." I said. "Most whales aren't big enough to swallow caravels whole."

Crocus laughed. "He's Laboon."

Sanji raised an eyebrow. "What's a Laboon whale?"

"Laboon isn't a breed, it's his name!" he laughed.

I looked around. "Why is Laboon's stomach painted like the sky?" I asked.

"Well," Crocus said, about to explain, when everything rattled. Everything, ship, island -which I realised was made of iron - and all listed to port.

I tripped and fell along with everyone else, crashing into Usopp. "Urrg..." I groaned. Then, I looked up and nearly had a heart attack. There was a large white, green, and tan blur crashed into me. "Zoro," I growled. "If another one of my ribs is broken, I swear to whatever god's up there-"

I didn't have time to finish my sentence, since a great shaking started. "Yikes!" I yelped as I crashed into Zoro instead of the other way around. "Sorry..." I said lamely, as Zoro glared at me as if to say, _you were saying something?_

Crocus growled. "Damn it... Not again." He grabbed a small iron boat, and got in. "He needs more already?!"

I pushed Usopp off me, and called to Crocus. "Hey! Flower-Ossan! Can I come too?"

Crocus stared at me, as if I had asked for some flour to put in my cocoa. "Well, if you must." he said, shifting over.

I jumped to the rail. "You guys watch the ship." I said. And before anyone could stop me, I jumped into the boat with the old man.

We sailed through the sea of stomach acid, all the way to the stomach wall. "This way." said Crocus. He opened a door in Laboon's stomach wall, and motioned for me to go first.

I just sat in the boat. I rubbed my eyes. Again, my brain told my eyes to look again.

_We're definitely looking this time._ my eyes responded.

So I stepped through the door.

As we walked along, I asked, "Can you go everywhere in this whale?"

Crocus chuckled. "Pretty much." he said. "Although I tend to stay out of his bowels, myself."

_With good reason._ I thought, slightly grossed out.

* * *

After a while, and a lot of tremors, we reached Laboon's brain. Next to his brain was a large needle and syringe full of a hazel-coloured liquid mounted on something that looked like a guitar stand.

Another tremor nearly made me lose my balance. I would have been impaled on the fearsome looking needle if Crocus hadn't caught me.

Crocus grabbed the giant syringe, and stabbed the needle into an exposed patch of Laboon's brain.

I gasped. "What are you doing, Ossan?!" I yelped.

"Sedating him." Crocus grunted.

"Sedating?" I repeated. "You keep him sedated?!"

Crocus raised an eyebrow at me. "You felt those tremors." he said. "Laboon has been smashing his head against the rocks of the red line. He won't stop. I don't like it, but I have to keep him sedated."

I put my hand over my mouth. "That's awful." I said, almost inaudibly.

Crocus nodded. "Yes... And that's not all." he said.

I raised an eyebrow. "What else?"

Crocus' expression was grim. "Whalers."

"Whalers?!"

He nodded. "The people from the nearest island are suffering from a slight famine, it would seem. They're after Laboon's meat."

I stared at Crocus in dumb disbelief. "Can I just say, 'Eww.'"

Crocus nodded. He went completely silent. Looks like the conversation was closed.

* * *

Suddenly, I remembered another reason I had followed Crocus. "Excuse me, Crocus-ossan." I said.

"Hm?" he said absently.

"Is there a route to Laboon's eyes?"

"His eyes?" Crocus said, in disbelief. "Why?"

I took a deep breath. "My brother fell off our ship, and I think that, you know, if I could look through Laboon's eyes, I might be able to find him."

Crocus rubbed his chin. "That does seem like a good idea..." he said gruffly. "Sure. Turn left at the first turn. Just try not to damage Laboon. He hurts himself enough."

I decided not to ask why Laboon was ramming his head against the wall. Instead, I walked down the hall, and turned left. Sure enough, I found the eyes within two minutes. I followed Laboon's optic nerve to his left eye. I stopped short. There was another door at Laboon's eyeball.

Taking a deep breath, I turned the doorknob and opened the door. When I stepped through the door, my sandalled foot landed in something squelchy and slightly gelatinous. "Oh, Yuck!" I said in disgust. "Eyeball juice." Absolutely disgusting. Now, I might not have been so disgusted if I hadn't set my foot in it.

I noticed that there was some space between the cornea and the sclera. I could walk through there. So I stepped right into the centre. I took a look out of Laboon's eye. I nearly had a heart attack.

Luffy was flying towards Laboon's eye, fist raised. When he noticed me, he stopped. He landed on Laboon's eyelid, and stared at me.

I pressed my hands against Laboon's cornea. "LUFFY!" I shouted.

Luffy pressed his hands on the other side, like he was looking at me through a prison window. He said something that I couldn't hear, probably because the whale's cornea was the perfect sound block. I could lip-read, though. He said something to the extent of, "_Koe? What are you __**doing **__in there?_"

"Looking for you!" I said, emphasizing my lip movement so he could read it.

"_How did you get in there?_"

I frowned. "Isn't it obvious?" I said. "We were eaten!"

Luffy stared at me for a moment, a confused look in his eyes. "_Oh." _

I sweatdropped. "Oh? That's it?" Then, another thought occurred to me. "You're not getting into any trouble, are you?"

Luffy frowned. Then he mouthed, "_The whale ate the ship." _

I shut my eyes in exasperation. "I _know_ that." I said. "Are you alright?"

Luffy nodded. "_How can I get in?" _he asked.

I shook my head. "Don't you dare!" I said. "You'll drown! Or get swallowed! We met the lighthouse keeper and he'll help us get out of here! You wait!"

Luffy opened his mouth to say something, but I cut him off. I had no idea how, especially since we couldn't hear each other. "And _don't _attack the whale!" I said. "Crocus-ossan doesn't have any more sedative! Don't wake him up!"

Luffy cocked his head. "_By the way, how did you get in his eye?" _

"I don't have time to explain!" I shouted. "Don't cause any trouble!"

Luffy grinned. He jumped off the eyelid. He did a kind of informal salute. "_Good luck, Sis!_"

I leaned forward as much as I could. "WAIT! LUFFY!" But he was gone.

I banged my head against Laboon's cornea. "ARRRG!" I growled. Then, I pulled back with a cry of disgust. I had put my head in some of Laboon's eye juice. "Eugh..." I said, wiping it out of my bangs and shaking it off my hands.

I winced. "Sorry, Laboon." I muttered. I figured he was putting himself through enough pain without me banging my head on his cornea. Not to mention the fact that there was a short human teenager walking inside his left eye. I wouldn't want someone in my peepers.

As I walked over to the door, I thought about my silent conversation with Luffy.

"Oh, boy..." I muttered. I got the feeling I hadn't gotten the message across to my idiot brother. My only hope was, he understood what I had said about not causing trouble with the whale. I didn't want to have to escape from the whale during one of his fits of madness. But I still couldn't shake the feeling that all I'd gotten out of that conversation was eye goo in my hair.

**Alright! That's chapter 34!**

**Koe: (gives a disgusted look) Eye goo?! Are you serious?**

**FM13: I knew you could handle it.**

**Koe: (groans) Please review... Sorry, I mean, Please review! (very pained XD)**


	35. Chapter 35

**Hey, all you Voice readers!**

**Sorry for the wait, but summer can be busy! **

**Luffy: But, Frosty always has time to write!**

**FM13: Luffy? What are you doing here? Where's everyone else?**

**Koe: Usopp went to buy some eggs. (frowns and taps her forehead) If he was telling me the truth. I have to take everything he says with a grain of salt. **

**Luffy: Nami went shopping. **

**Koe: Zoro and Sanji are fighting somewhere. I guess I'm kind of at fault, too. I asked Zoro what he thought of Sanji's cooking, and he said it was 'okay'. Of course, Sanji blew his top. So, yeah. They're fighting. **

**Luffy: You guys want some meat?**

**FM13: (chuckles) Not yet, Luffy. **

**Luffy: Awww... But I'm hungry.**

**Koe: (smacks him upside the head) Be patient!**

**FM13: How about another riddle to keep your mind off things? **

**Luffy: Yeah! Lay it on me!**

**FM13: What can you catch but not throw?**

**Koe: (snorts) I know this one. **

**Luffy: You do?! When did you hear it?**

**Koe: I never did. I can figure it out really easily, though. **

**Luffy: That's because you're smart. **

**Koe: I'll give you time to think about it. So, frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece, or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

**Luffy: I will figure out that answer! I'll do my best!**

Chapter 35

I made my way past Laboon's optical lobe. Man, it was confusing in there! The inside of a whale body is a lot harder to navigate than the average suburban neighborhood.

At one point, I got lost and ended up in Laboon's nasal passage. I figured that out when I had put my hand on the wall to steady myself. I'm not going into details. I'm sure you can figure out what I can put my hand in.

* * *

When I finally made my way to the stomach, I noticed there were two people crouching behind the door. "Hey." I said.

They both turned around. Apparently, they weren't expecting someone to come up behind them, because they jumped about a foot in the air.

The man was tall and lanky. He had bright orange hair, like Nami's. He wore a green suit. He had two tattoos of the number nine on each cheek, right under the eyes. The weirdest part; there was a silver crown on his head.

The woman - well, I probably shouldn't say 'woman', she only looked about a year older than me - was a little taller than me, with a long mane of bright blue hair pulled back in a ponytail. She had brown eyes, and pale skin. She wore a tank top with blue wavy stripes, and beige short shorts.

Both of them were eyeing me like I had just dropped from the moon.

"Well." said the man. "Looks like we have a straggler from that crew over there. What do you think?" He turned to the woman.

She giggled in a manner that disgusted me. "I agree..." she said.

"Who are you two?" I asked.

The two of them smirked. "I am Mr. 9." the man said.

"I am Miss Wednesday." the woman said.

I stopped short and stared at them. I blinked a couple of times.

_Are you sure that's what you heard?_ my brain said.

_We definitely heard exactly that. _my ears responded. _You have to work out the rest._

What kind of twisted parents were that cruel? Unless they were surnames. But who on the sea has the number nine as a surname?

"Well...?" I said slowly. Suddenly, it dawned on me. Whalers. These people were carrying guns. I reached for the water bottle I usually kept on my belt.

I didn't get the chance, though. There was a loud crash, and Luffy fell right on top of them.

He looked at me for a second. "Oh, hey Koe!" he said. "What were you saying about wool?"

I facepalmed. "I said 'whale'!" I said wearily. "I was trying to tell you not to come in here! And how did you get in here without passing through his stomach?"

Luffy pointed upwards. "There was a door in him. I just went through the door."

I rolled my eyes. "By the way, not that I'm against it, but you might want to stop standing on them."

Luffy looked down, noticed the pair of whalers he was standing on, and nearly jumped out of his skin. "Oh! Sorry!" he yelped. "I guess I should have looked where I landed. Shishishishi!"

I half laughed, half sighed. I was pretty sure I was happy that Luffy was a complete idiot and didn't look where he landed.

"Who are these people anyway?" he asked.

I'm pretty sure my expression darkened, because Luffy jumped back a bit. I took a deep breath, and said, "I'm not sure. I think they're... whalers."

Luffy frowned, which looked rather alien on him. Then, his innocent expression reasserted control. "What are whalers?"

I slapped my forehead so hard I thought my skull would crack. "They hunt whales."

Luffy's look changed from innocence to disgust. "They hunt WHALES?!"

"That's what I said." I said. "At least, that's what I think. I'm not sure..."

"Oh!" Luffy said. "So, do you want me to kick their asses?"

I stifled a laugh. "I think you've already done that." I said. I knelt down and touched Miss Wednesday's wrist. "She's got a pulse... I think they're both alive." I gently pushed Luffy off them. "Let's take them to the ship. I can heal their bumps and bruises on board."

Luffy grabbed Mr. 9's unconscious body and flung it over his shoulder.

I took up miss Wednesday's arm. With a lot of difficulty, I managed to haul her off the floor, and followed Luffy out the door.

* * *

When we got back to the ship, we were met with complete confusion.

"Who on earth are these people?" Nami asked.

"They're whalers." Luffy said.

I shot a quick glance at Crocus. "Uh, Luffy..." I said quickly. "Maybe you should wait. Crocus might kill them."

Sure enough, Crocus' look was murderous. "I will never let these bastards lay a hand on Laboon."

I stood up in front of him. "Wait just a second!" I said. "We'll keep them on the ship and take them back to where they belong!"

That earned me a look of confusion and annoyance from Sanji and Usopp. "So now we're doing charity runs for whalers?" Sanji asked.

"It's a bad idea, Koe." Usopp said, although in a much nicer tone than Sanji.

I sighed and shook my head, and propped both of them up against the mast. "Listen, Crocus-ossan." I said. "We'll give them the boot once we take them to their home, and I'll make them swear never to come here again. But first, we have a problem that we need to solve right away." I paused for effect. "We need to get out of Laboon's stomach. Fast." I walked over to the rail and looked down at the damaged hull. "I don't know how much more Merry can take."

Crocus nodded. "Fine." he said. "As long as you take those... people out of here."

"Get us out of here?!" someone said smugly. Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday were up. They had their guns cocked over their shoulders. "Well, you're all pretty stupid, aren't you?"

Miss Wednesday laughed. "We will have whale meat to feed our village!"

"WAIT!" I shouted. But they both pulled their triggers. Two large cannonballs shot towards the wall of Laboon's stomach. I couldn't do anything. I couldn't let them kill the whale!

There was a loud bang, and the cannonballs exploded in mid-air.

Crocus smiled. "These cannonballs are nothing." he said.

I sighed with relief. I walked up to them, and grabbed them by their ears. I shoved them to the ground. I grabbed their bazookas, and tossed them into Laboon's stomach acid.

I wasn't sure why, but I was feeling very protective of this whale. It was probably because I felt sorry for him, having a bunch of passageways in his body, slamming his head into the red line, and being hunted by whalers like these jokers.

"If you two try anything funny, I'll push you off the ship." I growled.

Zoro stepped up to me. "You really are a head case." he said. "First you decided to help them and take them back to where they came from, then you tell them you'll push them into stomach acid. You should seek professional help."

I shot up and stared up into Zoro's eyes - which, of course, I had to stand on my tiptoes - glaring at him. "You stay out of it!" I snapped. I probably shouldn't have jumped down Zoro's throat like that, but I was still pissed about him tricking me and letting me fall twenty feet from the rigging. "None of us really know what this poor whale has gone through! I'm not letting them hurt him more than he already is!"

To my surprise, Zoro stepped back, looking extremely affronted. I guess I had snapped at him too hard.

"Ummm..."

We both whipped around. "What?"

Miss Wednesday was staring at us with an odd look in her eyes. "I hate to interrupt you little... um..."

I cut her off. "If you call it a 'lover's quarrel' I swear that I'll-"

I was immediately cut off by Sanji. "There is no way Koe-chwan wouldbe with that stupid marimo! Koe-chwan-"

"Is definitely not with you." I cut him off cooly. "Can we _**please**_ drop this?" I said, a little more wearily. I ran my hand through my hair, and sighed heavily. I was painfully conscious of Usopp, Nami, and Luffy staring at Sanji, Zoro, and I wide-eyed, not daring to say a thing.

I blushed. I had just lost my cool. Exploded. Went psycho. In front of everyone.

"Anyway," I said, turning my wrath back to Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday. "Like I said, don't try anything funny."

Mr. 9 smirked. "I never expected such a cute little kid to-" Before I could react, Luffy had bonked both of them on the head, knocking them both out.

"Why did you-" I began.

"I felt like it." Luffy said. "They needed a good thump."

I sighed. Then, I nodded. "Luffy..." I said. "I'll check the sail... It might have come loose in the storm."

As I walked off, I heard Crocus whispering to Luffy. "I never thought she had such a temper." he said. "She really shut all four of them up."

I heard Luffy laugh. "I haven't seen her explode like that since our brother locked her in the closet by accident. Shishishi! She was _so_ mad!"

I climbed up the mast, trying to keep _**that**_ memory out of my mind. I remembered that. Ace had looked just as taken aback as Zoro was now. Later, Ace had called that an impressive feat, considering the fact that I only knew about six or seven words at that time, so I had been ranting at him in english. I still felt a pang of embarrassment whenever I thought about it, even though Ace had told me there was no hard feelings.

* * *

Crocus gave instructions to get out of Laboon's stomach.

Nami was shouting orders.

Everyone else was running around, taking Nami's orders, except for Usopp, who kept an eye on Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday.

After spending ten minutes fussing with a sail that was completely fine, I could see there was no help for it. With a sigh, I climbed down the rigging, a little nervous about the height, and went down on deck.

I hit the deck with a thump, and looked around. I sighed. Might as well get the one that would be less uncomfortable over with first.

Sanji was standing at the bow, looking out between Laboon's teeth.

Taking a deep breath, I tapped his shoulder. "Hey."

Sanji turned around, and raised an eyebrow at me. "Hey, Koe-chan." he said. "What's up?"

I stared at my feet. "I'm... I wanted to apologise." I said. Time to bite the bullet. "I've been a bit of a jerk."

Sanji raised his curly eyebrow, and smiled. "No problem." he said. "I'm not upset. Besides, I'm not exactly faultless in this instance.

_Or in any other, for that matter._ I thought. "Look, I'll try to be a little nicer to you, but please-"

Sanji had made a move towards me.

"Don't hug me." I said.

Sanji smiled. "It's fine. Though, right now, you look like you need one." Then, without warning, he gave me a quick hug.

It wasn't like Sanji to do that. That was almost as surprising as the fact that he let go. It was just an I'm-your-friend-and -I'm-here-for-you hug, not a 'te amo' hug.

After he let me go, Sanji turned away.

I knew the matter was closed. Sanji had forgiven and forgotten, and there was no reason to bring it up again.

I smiled. That hadn't gone so badly...

* * *

I wasn't looking forward to my next encounter. I stepped over to the rail, where Zoro was struggling with the anchor. I waited till he finished hooking the anchor on the rail before I tapped him on the shoulder.

Zoro turned around, one eyebrow raised. When he noticed it was me, he half-turned away, and grunted.

"Umm..." I said. Geez louise, this was awkward... "I- I wanted to apologise..."

Zoro didn't move, didn't say anything. He just grunted.

"I really shouldn't have snapped at you like that. I don't know what's gotten into me since we left Loguetown." I said. "I... I was a complete ass today."

Zoro nodded, a thoughtful look on his face.

That wasn't the reaction I expected. He didn't look happy, or upset, or smug, or nettled, or any other emotion I might have expected him to feel. He just nodded, without saying anything.

For a few minutes, we just stood there. I felt a prickle of embarrassment. Was he going to say anything? It was getting more and more awkward as we stood there in silence.

After what seemed like an eternity, Zoro turned his back on me and stared out at Laboon's passing teeth. "Well," he said. "I wasn't exactly making it very hard for you."

Was Zoro agreeing? Was he apologising to me? Was I delving too deep into this?

Zoro sighed, and turned to face me. "We've been butting heads since I joined the crew." he said. Not exactly an untrue statement. "Maybe if we gave it a rest. A little."

I smiled. "Just so it doesn't get too far." I said.

A faint smile crossed Zoro's face. He held out his hand.

I shook it. A handshake. Not exactly a hug, but what else could I expect with Zoro?

Suddenly, Luffy jumped up behind us, put his arms over our shoulders, and turned us towards the bow. "Look!" he shouted, grinning. "We're there!"

We watched as Laboon's huge mouth opened, and a blast of light met us.

I blinked, waiting for my eyes to adjust. My gaze was met by the splendor of Twin Cape, and the salty rush of sea wind made me feel more alive than I could ever have believed possible.

Luffy laughed again. "We're out!"

* * *

"Well." I said faintly, staring up at Laboon. "He really _is_ big."

I was staring at what looked like the largest whale in the world. I knew Laboon had to be huge, considering the fact that he'd swallowed Merry and her crew whole, without scraping his throat with the mast, but I'd never imagine that he was as large as Reverse Mountain itself. His teeth were the size of a man, you could have built a small neighborhood on his nose, and the merry could have fitted many times in his huge, round eye. There were huge scars on his snout. Even a mighty whale like Laboon couldn't ram against the red line without getting a wound.

Crocus nodded. "Laboon is an island whale." he said. "When he first came to Twin Cape fifty years ago, he was about the size of a small boat. Quite cute, really."

I frowned. That's when I remembered. Makino had given me a book on the different types of whales when I was learning to read. Island whales were considered the largest whales in the world. "But Crocus-ossan..." I said. "Island whales aren't native to the grand line. They're from the west blue."

Crocus smiled. "You know whales, eh?" he said. "You're right. Laboon came across Reverse Mountain with a group of pirates from the west blue. The pirates left to sail the world, leaving Laboon here. They promised they'd come back someday."

"But it's been fifty years..." Nami said sadly. "They didn't achieve their promise."

Crocus shook his head. "Laboon is still waiting for them." he said. "He believes they'll come back someday."

I stepped up and put my hand on Laboon's thick hide. "Poor Laboon..." I said. "They must have been great friends."

Laboon opened his huge mouth, and let out an ear splitting roar. I covered my ears so to keep my eardrums from breaking. I smiled. "I knew it." I said. "They aren't dead. They'll come back."

I turned to Luffy. "Hey! While we sail the grand line, let's keep a lookout for Laboon's friends."

Luffy grinned. "Shishishi!" he laughed. "Alright!"

I smiled.

I had wondered what it was about Laboon that made me like him so much. Now I knew. He had lost important people, too. He was waiting for them to get back. He was trying to burst through the red line to find them.

I felt kind of... well, part of me wanted to give up right then and there. Laboon had been waiting for fifty years, and still hadn't met up with his friends again. It didn't exactly make me feel hopeful about seeing Keith again. Suddenly, I got the feeling the world was a lot bigger than I thought.

On the other hand, I also felt an odd sense of determination. It was amazing how a meeting with a whale could strengthen my resolve to find my brother.

"Thanks, Laboon." I muttered.

**Luffy: Hmmmm... **

**Koe: Still haven't figured it out, eh?**

**Luffy: (throws his hands in the air) I just don't get it!**

**Koe: Think hard, Luffy. Catching isn't just an expression used for ball games. **

**Luffy: Are you talking about that_ base-ball_ stuff again? **

**Koe: (nods) But you can throw a baseball. Think more... subtle. **

**FM13: Koe, don't tell him everything. You'll give away the answer. **

**Koe: (shrugs) Okay, then... Please review!**


	36. Chapter 36

**Hey, all you Voice readers! **

**We got a lot of reviews answering the riddle in the last chapter! **

**Luffy: Did they get it right?**

**Koe: Luffy, why don't you tell them your guess? You did figure it out... after a few days. **

**Luffy: (grins) A cold! It's a cold!**

**FM13: So, to all those who reviewed with the answer, You were right! **

**Koe: (glares) This doesn't happen to be foreshadowing of some kind, does it?**

**FM13: Just say the disclaimer. **

**Koe: (groans and rolls her eyes) Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

Chapter 36

"Now." Crocus said, handing Nami an odd looking bracelet. It had an interesting wood-like finish, and a glass dome with the N for North, S for South, E for East, W for west, and a needle clicking from side to side.

"This is a log pose." he said. "You're going to need this if you're navigating the Grand Line. Normal compasses don't work here."

I raised my eyebrows. "They don't?" I said, "Then how does a log pose work?"

I must have sounded rather skeptical, because Crocus laughed. "They lock onto an island's magnetic signature. Unlike other seas, islands in the Grand Line have their own magnetic signature. Because they're so odd, log poses take time to reset. That's the hard part. No run-of-the-mill navigator can use a log pose."

I smiled. "Well then." I said. "Nami's the right navigator for the job. She's the best navigator around!"

Nami blushed. Then, she grinned. "Of course, she's right!"

I turned to Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday. "So where exactly are you two from, anyway?"

Miss Wednesday looked at me fearfully - I guess my little outburst spooked her a bit - and said, "We're from Whiskey Peak."

I nodded. "Alright then." I said. "I guess our course has been set."

Nami grinned. "Shall we go-aaahhh!"

Laboon let out a bellow so loud it knocked me to the ground.

"What's going on?!" I shouted, although it was drowned in the noise.

Crocus patted Laboon's side. "Come now, Laboon!" he called. "It's alright! You don't have to cry!"

"Crocus!" Usopp shouted. "What's going on?!"

Then, Luffy acted. In -of course- a way no one would have expected. He jumped up so high, he was level with Laboon's eye. Then, he pulled his fist back, and slammed it into his eye!

"LUFFY!" We snapped.

Laboon reared back his head, and rammed it at Luffy. He hit the red line with the force of a hundred cannonballs.

I winced. Where was Luffy? Go figure. Up in the air. "Gum-Gum... Gattling!" he shouted. He smacked Laboon repeatedly.

"Damn it, Luffy!" I shouted. "Knock it off!" Then, I stopped. I stared at Laboon's enormous eye. It was shining.

Nami stepped forward. "Luffy! Sto-" I put my hand on Nami's shoulder.

"Give him a break, Nami." I said. "Look at Laboon."

Luffy hit the rocks with a thud. He smiled. "So that's it." he said. "Your pirate friends used to fight with you. You really miss that." He flashed Laboon a huge grin. "I'll tell you what." he said. "When I become king of the pirates, I'll come back and fight you. We'll have a great time!"

Laboon's eye -the one I could see, anyway- filled with tears. He opened his mouth and let out a bellow of happiness.

Smiling, I walked up to Luffy and put my hand on his shoulder. "How is it that you can make anyone feel better in the weirdest ways?"

Luffy grinned. "Shishishi! I don't know!"

Laboon bellowed again.

I gently pushed Luffy aside. "Hey, Laboon!" I called. I had noticed something on Laboon's back. Something I wanted to get rid of for him. I called on the water. It rose, but not as quickly as normal. I frowned. I insisted, and the water rose above Laboon's head. I made a slashing motion with my arm. The water cascaded down Laboon's back, snapping off five or six very large barnacles. I couldn't exactly tell what size the barnacles were, because of how fast they were moving. Unfortunately, I had miscalculated as to where they would land. One of them hit Usopp in the back, knocking him into the water.

"Oops." I said. I willed the sea to spit him up. For an alarming moment, it didn't do anything. Then, with a faint _squirt_, Usopp popped out of the water and landed on his back on the dock.

"Oops." I said again.

Usopp jumped up, fire in his eyes. "Damn it!" he shouted. "I'll get you for this, Koe!"

Nami, Zoro, and Sanji, who were standing behind Usopp, started chuckling. After a few seconds, they started guffawing.

Usopp whipped around to face them. "WHAT THE HELL'S SO FUNNY!" he shouted.

Of course, at that point, I had a good view of what the hell was so funny. One of the huge barnacles, which I now realised was as big around as a basketball, had gotten a foothold on his back.

I stifled a laugh. Okay, that was pretty funny. "Here," I said. "Turn around and I'll find a way to get it off." I latched my fingers around the part of the barnacle that was too wide to latch onto him, and pulled. But barnacles, like limpets and other things, once they get a foothold, they'll keep a death grip on their host. My tugging the barnacle did absolutely nothing.

After a couple of minutes, Luffy joined in. Then Nami. Zoro and Sanji didn't do anything. They just stood there, laughing. Asses. At least the rest of us had the decency to try to get it off.

Finally, with a squelching sound, the barnacle came off. All three of us fell backwards on top of Crocus.

"Sorry, Crocus-ossan." I said.

"No problem." he grunted, pushing us off.

Usopp, on the other hand, had hurtled towards Zoro and Sanji, who made no attempt to catch him. He slipped on the wet rock, and fell into the water again.

With gales of new laughter, Sanji walked over to the side, and stuck his hand in the water and fished Usopp out. Usopp looked absolutely livid.

9 and Wednesday were laughing almost as hard as Zoro and Sanji. I got up and I smacked both of them. "I really wish the Merry had a prison cell." I growled. "Then we could toss you two in there when you annoy us." That earned me a very dirty look from both of them.

Laboon let out a kind of happy whimper. Then, he turned to me, and I was assaulted by a wet pink thing. Of course, I was lifted off the ground. Laboon was huge. It would be like me trying to lick a baby ant. With a great Slurping sound, I was launched into the air.

I risked a look down. I nearly fainted from fear. I was two hundred feet above the ground!

I let out a little yelp, then plummeted. Wind whistled in my ears and cold bit at my skin. That wasn't too much of a problem for me, though. It was the fact that I was so high up that was scaring me. I screwed my eyes shut and waited for the horrible splat that would end my life.

Of course, Luffy caught me. He jumped up, caught me, and landed on his feet.

"Wow!" he said. "That must have been quite a ride!"

Laboon stared at me, concerned.

I stayed in Luffy's grip, shivering from cold and fright. I was covered in whale drool. I couldn't speak for a few seconds. Finally, I nodded to show Luffy I could stand again. "Thanks, Laboon." I said shakily. "T-that was sweet."

Laboon gave another _Buaaaa-_

I smiled, then, I sneezed loudly.

* * *

By the time we got everything packed up on the Merry, Mr. 9 and Miss Wednesday were under strict supervision, and the log pose checked out, the sun was dipping to the horizon line.

"Well," Nami said, sliding the log pose onto her wrist. "I guess we'd better go."

Laboon let out a mournful bellow.

"Oh, don't be sad, Laboon!" I called. "We'll be back! For sure!"

Luffy jumped off Merry's deck. "Hey!" he said, grinning. "I've got an idea!"

* * *

"Uh, Luffy..." I said. "The thought is sweet... But the art is..." Abysmal. That was the word.

Luffy had taken paint from Merry's storage, and painted our jolly roger on his snout. It, as well as Luffy's other drawings and paintings, looked like the work of a two-year-old.

Laboon, however, seemed to like it. He let out a bellow of delight.

I grinned.

"Well, we really should get going now." Nami said. "C'mon Luffy."

We climbed on board, and we started to sail away.

"Thanks for everything Crocus!" Nami called.

"Take care of yourselves!" Usopp called.

I looked at Laboon. "Take care, Laboon!" I called.

We all waved as Twin Cape disappeared from sight. I could still hear Laboon's cry of farewell.

* * *

"Now, what way to Whiskey Peak?" Nami asked.

Wednesday frowned. "West." she said.

Nami nodded. "Okay! Set course! Three o'clock!"

I stood up. "Okay!" I said. "I'll man the rudder." I took a step forward, and a wave of dizziness hit me. I swayed, and nearly collapsed.

Sanji caught me before I could hit the deck. "Koe-chan," he said. "Are you alright?!" He sounded a little worried. "What's wrong?"

I blinked hard. Blue and Yellow spots were dancing in front of my eyes. "I'm fine." I said. "Just a dizzy spell."

Zoro, who was standing watch over 9 and Wednesday, looked at me and raised an eyebrow. "Who do you think you're fooling?" he said sternly. "You've looked pale ever since we scaled reverse mountain. I'm not surprised you're sick."

"I'm not sick!" I protested. "I feel fine!"

Nami stepped up, and placed the back of her hand on my forehead. "You're a little warm." she said. "You've got a bit of a fever."

"Like I said," I growled. "I'm fine!"

Sanji shook his head. "You're not putting up a very convincing defense." he said. "You should get some rest."

I rolled my eyes. "But I'm not sick." I said. "I've never been sick a day in my life!"

Usopp shrugged. "There's a first time for everything, isn't there?"

These people weren't making it easy for me to get to the rudder!

I jerked from Sanji's grasp, and said, "Now, if it pleases your majesties, I'm going to man the rudder." I was going to walk away, when Luffy slam-tackled me in a kind of headlock.

"C'mon!" he said, that laughing tone still in his voice. "Let's get you to your room. You're probably cancerous! Shishishi!"

"You mean 'contagious.'" I deadpanned. "And I'm not sick!" But there was nothing I could do. Luffy pushed me inside, and then shoved me into my room.

"Stay put!" he said. "Get some rest! That's an order!" With that, he turned and left.

I turned and faced my hammock. My desk was near it, and my book was opened to a fresh page. I sighed, and felt my forehead. It was really warm. I walked over and shut the book. "Sorry, Shanks." I said. "I'm not going to be writing anything tonight."

I flopped down on my hammock. I groaned. Now that I was alone in the girl's room, and all the events of the day were over, I felt weak, and very, very feverish. Whaddaya know... Nami was right. I was really sick.

Suddenly, Merry started rocking under my feet. I tried to keep myself from being sick from the nauseating rolling. Just our luck to have hit a storm. I pulled my bandana off and wetted it. I placed it on my forehead, and closed my eyes.

* * *

I knew I must have had a fever judging by the dreams I had. They were really strange. I saw memories I hadn't thought of for a while.

First off, I was three years old, holding onto Keith's hand. "Where are we going?" I asked. "Is Mommy following us?"

Keith didn't answer for a moment. Then, he said, "Mom doesn't know where we are. Give me a second. I need to remember the way."

I looked around. I didn't recognise the alleyway we were going through. All I knew was, I was scared. If we got caught... I didn't want to think about it.

We rounded a corner, and Keith gasped. He had caught his foot on a space between two cobblestones. We both fell with a crash.

That was when I noticed flashing lights and police sirens coming our way.

Almost as fast as the scene appeared, it was gone. Faded to give way to a new scene.

* * *

I was five years old, sitting on the dock at Windmill Village. Beside me, Luffy was pulling at his rubbery fingers, and swinging his legs over the side of the dock. On my other side, Shanks was leaning back, staring at the sky, his feet in the water.

We were just sitting in silence. I didn't mind so much, because I couldn't understand them and they couldn't understand me.

I stared out at the calm surface of the water. I gasped. "Oh! Shanks! Luffy!"

A fish that must have been as big as Shanks had broken the surface of the water, launching itself high in the air, spraying us with a fine, refreshing mist.

Luffy leaned forward, grinning. "Sugoi!" he shouted.

Unfortunately, I didn't notice until it was too late. "Luffy!" I warned. Of course it didn't work.

Luffy leaned over too far, lost his balance, and fell in.

Shanks laughed, then dove in after him.

Then, this scene faded too, and a new scene took it's place.

* * *

I was with Luffy, Ace, and Sabo. We had been racing through the forest, when we had to cross a suspension bridge.

Luffy had fallen through a rotting board.

Ace had jumped off and grabbed him, while Sabo had grabbed Ace's ankles, trying to keep him from falling further. As for me, I couldn't do much, so I grabbed onto Sabo's waist, trying to support the weight of three other people, or so I thought at the time.

It took a long time, but Luffy managed to climb over Ace and Sabo to the bridge.

I reached out, and Luffy grabbed my hand.

* * *

I was eleven years old, sitting against a tree, holding my shin. I had gotten into a scuffle with a mother bear when I was trying to catch up to Luffy and Ace. I had just barely managed to escape with the help of my devil fruit power, but not before she had slashed me across the shin.

Now, I was lost, terrified, bleeding like crazy, and completely alone.

I shut my eyes and rested the back of my head against the trunk. I had to stay calm. Freaking out wasn't going to do anything.

Step one: don't panic.

Step two: consider your options. Call for help? No. That wouldn't do any good. If anything, I would draw unwanted attention to myself. Walk fifteen kilometers to Dadan's hut? Hell no. I could barely get past the bear and get less than a kilometer away. Walking all the way to Dadan's hut wasn't an option. Hop on one foot? Not a hope. Stay where I was? Only option at the moment.

I pulled off my bandana, which I kept around my neck at that point, and wrapped it around my shin, applying pressure to stop the bleeding. The only thing I could do after that was wait.

I waited for a long time. Finally, I heard someone call my name. I knew that voice. "Ace!" I called. "Over here!"

Ace stumbled through the brush, a look of concern on his face. He turned pale when he saw my leg. He dashed over. "Oh my god..." he breathed. "Here." He picked me up. "Let's go back. Luffy's waiting."

The scene spun, cries met my ears, I groaned, then my eyes snapped open.

* * *

I rolled over and looked at the clock on the wall.

11:00

I groaned and buried my head further into my pillow. I tried to go back to sleep, but apparently I had already gotten my visit from mr. Sandman. I suddenly wished I had Zoro's ability to fall asleep at the drop of a hat.

I sighed. Then, I realised that Merry wasn't moving. At first, I thought it was because the storm had subsided, but now I realised that Merry wasn't moving at all. "Must have reached Whiskey Peak." I muttered. Groaning, I hauled myself off my hammock, and jumped down. I hit the floor with a thud.

I rubbed my forehead. My fever had gone down quite a bit. A bit of rest was just what the non-existent doctor had ordered. I found that rather ironic, since _I_ was the impromptu doctor of the ship.

I climbed up on deck and squinted at the village of Whiskey Peak. There were very few lights on, so I might not have been able to see much if it hadn't been for the full moon.

The houses were built to resemble two story desert houses, made of mud, with no glass in the windows. The roads weren't paved, but then again, that wasn't so abnormal. The place smelled vaguely of wine, and something else. Blood. Smoke. A battle had happened not too long ago.

I caught my breath when I saw the rocks behind the village. They looked a bit like cacti, but they weren't cacti. They were very large spherical boulders. The things that looked like needles from this distance were actually... I swallowed the lump in my throat... graves.

Suddenly, battle cries and screams echoed from the centre of town. A large dust cloud kicked up. It looked oddly like a sword slash.

I sighed, and rubbed my temples. "Moss-ball's causing trouble..." I groaned. I stepped over the rail, and climbed down the rope ladder. "I'd better go. Zoro probably needs my help. Better go see what he's broken this time."

**Koe: (glares) I knew it. It was foreshadowing. **

**FM13: Heh heh... **

**Luffy: Well, this is probably going to get ugly, so I'll say it now! Please review! XD**


	37. Chapter 37

**Hey, all you Voice readers! Sorry for the hiatus! I had the horrible disease known as writer's block. **

**Koe: Oh well. It's nice to be back, anyway. **

**Luffy: Frosty, give me another riddle! **

**Koe: (cuffs him upside the head) Geez. Give her a break! Frosty doesn't always have a riddle up her sleeves.**

**FM13: (smirks) I think I've got one. **

**I have holes in my top, bottom, left, right, and middle. But I still hold water. What am I?**

**Luffy: (frowns) I'm not sure... Koe, help!**

**Koe: You haven't thought for more than three seconds! Think for yourself, rubber-brain.**

**Zoro: A riddle? What is it? **

**Usopp: I'd like to know. **

**Sanji: I'll work on any riddle with you, Koe-chwaan!**

**Koe: Oh, spare me. **

**FM13: When did you guys get here?**

**Usopp: Just a few seconds ago. **

**FM13: Koe can tell you the riddle. (turns to Koe) I assume you've already figured out the answer. **

**Koe: (nods) **

**FM13: Can you say the disclaimer, then? **

**Koe: Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters, although they do seem to hang around much. Only her OCs. **

Chapter 37

I made my way down the streets of Whiskey Peak, following the smell of battle. If you've never smelled battle, I have to tell you it's hard to explain. It's the smell of smoke and gunpowder and blood. Most of the things that people tend to associate with death.

It didn't take me long to catch up to Zoro. I stopped just behind the corner of a building, so I had a good view of Zoro, but he couldn't see me.

Zoro slashed a man dressed as a priest with one of his new swords. The one he called Kitetsu III.

Involuntarily, I shuddered. Geez, that sword gave me the creeps!

After he cut the priest guy - who I decided must not have been a priest, since he was carrying a thirty caliber rifle in his hands - Zoro sheathed his swords, and grunted in satisfaction.

I stepped out of the shadows, clapping lightly. "What a nice performance." I said. "A perfect example of the ass-kicking of the weak."

Zoro whipped around at the sound of my voice. "What the hell are you doing here?" he asked.

I shrugged. "I'm not staying on board Merry while the rest of you people explore the sights of Whiskey Peak."

Zoro frowned. "You didn't miss much." he said. "This place is actually a base of operations for Baroque Works."

I frowned. "Baroque Works?" I asked. "What's Baroque Works?"

"A crime syndicate." he growled. "Turns out, they welcome pirates into their town, rob them of everything they have while they're in a drunken sleep, and turn them in to the marines."

I stopped. Then, I burst out laughing. "You guys came and actually fell for their welcoming pirates act! So typical! Hahahahahaha!"

Zoro grew shark teeth. "Shut up!" he snapped. "While you were sleeping on the Merry, I was up fighting these guys!"

I put my hands in front of me, palms out. "Hey, don't get me wrong." I said. "I found your performance very impressive. Although..." I raised my hand, and said, "Azure needles."

The small bullets of water hit another Baroque Works agent, who had been trying to attack Zoro while he was talking to me.

I smirked. "You did miss one."

Zoro cast a sideways glance. "I did that on purpose."

"Sure you did."

"So," I said. "You did this all by yourself."

Zoro nodded. "You know." he said. "Strong like bull."

I smirked. "Yeah, smart like hockey puck."

Zoro grew shark teeth. "What the hell?!" he snarled. Then, he stopped, looking a little sheepish. "What's a hockey puck?"

I smiled. Of course Zoro wouldn't have heard of a hockey puck. There wasn't even hockey in this world. "I'll explain later."

Suddenly, I heard a grunt and a groan coming from the ground at my feet. I looked down and nearly jumped out of my skin.

Lying in the dust at my feet was a man. He had one of those old-style wigs on, you know, the ones with the multiple curls that look absolutely ridiculous. His blue suit was greyed from the dust. There was a fine line of blood dribbling from his hairline.

Zoro stepped towards him, his hand on the hilt of his white sword, the Wado Ichimonji. "Well." he said. "Looks like one survived."

"Swordsman!" the man shouted. "I have a most ridiculous request!"

"Well?" I said. "Lay it on us."

The man coughed, cleared his throat, and said, "Please! I have failed in my mission! Protect princess Vivi of Alabasta in my stead! The people after her have devil fruit powers! I do not have the strength to defeat them!" He grabbed Zoro's ankle. "I beg of you! Please!"

Zoro grew shark teeth. "Hell no!" he snapped. "In case you've forgotten, you people just tried to _kill_ me! Why would I help you?!"

I put my hand on Zoro's arm. "Wait a second, hold the phone." I said. "What's going on here, anyway? First I find out that this is the base of operations for some branch of a crime syndicate, now you say something about a princess from Alabasta? And you're asking a couple of pirates to protect her from devil fruit users?"

The man nodded. "You will be rewarded! Please! If princess Vivi dies, all hope is lost for our kingdom!"

"Forget it!" Zoro growled. "I'm not doing anything for you!"

"So, about this reward..."

I looked up. Nami was sitting on the landing of the building across from us. She had that look in her eyes that I knew meant she had a scheme on her mind.

Zoro made a choking sound. "I thought you were asleep!" he said.

Nami rolled her eyes. "You don't seriously expect me to fall asleep in a place that welcomes pirates, do you?" she said. "It was a charade, an act."

Zoro frowned again. "Shut up!" he growled.

Nami looked down at the tube-head again. "So, in exchange for saving your princess' life, I'd like one billion berries."

Tube-hair nearly choked too. "A.. *erherm* Ma maaaaa! A billion?!" He yelped.

Nami frowned. "I don't get it..." she said, pressing a finger to her lips. "If your princess' life isn't worth that much, I understand, but-"

"What?!" Tube-hair yelped.

Zoro and I exchanged an exasperated glance.

Zoro shook his head. "Fights dirty, doesn't she?"

I nodded. "Aims right below the belt."

Nami kept at it. "For a billion berries, we'll take your princess home."

Tube-hair eyed Nami, and I got the feeling I knew what he was thinking. Nami didn't look ready to fight a bunch of devil fruit users.

"Zoro and Koe will take care of it."

I facepalmed. "I knew it..." I grumbled.

Zoro grew shark teeth. "No way!" he snapped. "I'm not doing what you volunteered to do! Forget it!"

Nami stepped up to him and folded her arms across her chest. "Come on." she said. "The money in the deals I make is all mine, of course, but my acts involve all of us."

"Like hell!" Zoro growled.

I rolled my eyes. While Nami and Zoro kept fighting, I turned to Tube-hair. "So who is this princess, anyway? What does she look like?"

Tube-hair looked at me like I'd sprouted an extra head. "She came back here with you on your vessel."

I blinked. "Wednesday?"

He nodded.

"Yosh!" I said. "Sounds like a plan."

Tube-hair gave me a grateful look. "So, you'll do it?"

I nodded. "Yup! Just leave it to us, Tube-ossan!" I looked over my shoulder at Zoro and Nami, who were still squawking like crazy. My shoulders slumped. "On second thought... Maybe I'll go ahead."

* * *

I broke into a run down the road. I stopped at a four-way stop. Where the hell was I supposed to be going, anyway? I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. If I were trying to get away from someone, where would I go? The docks! That's it! I made a hard left, and dashed down the road.

I was about halfway to the docks when an explosion shook the dirt under my feet. "Damn..." I muttered. "Better pick up the pace."

I rounded a corner and nearly ran head first into miss Wednesday riding some kind of... duck? I swerved to the right, and was nearly hit by... Oh god. Was that someone's snot?! We were right next to the sea, so in the split second before it hit, I raised my arms and called on the water. "Junsai."

The water rose with lightning speed. And it was a good thing, too. The snot hit my shield, and promptly exploded. The shock waves nearly destroyed my defenses, it was so powerful.

When the dust subsided, I turned to Wednesday. "Hey, you alright?" I asked.

She blinked a couple of times, then nodded.

"Good." I said. "Now, who are these weirdos?"

'Weirdos' was a nice way to describe the people standing a few meters down the road. A man and a woman. The man was wearing a long burgundy coat with a couple of patches with the number 5 on them. A real master of disguise... I'm dealing with a real 007 here. His black hair was done in dreadlocks, and he wore sunglasses even in the dead of night.

His lady companion had a happy, maybe slightly crazy look in her eyes. She wore a short dress with orange slice designs and a large bulbous yellow hat. She was twirling a blue and yellow umbrella over her shoulder. She definitely didn't look sane. "Well." she said. "Look who's come to save the princess. A little kid."

I felt another twinge of annoyance. "I'm not a little kid." I snarled. I turned to Wednesday again. "Get going!" I said. "You know where our ship is moored, right? Go!"

Wednesday just stared at me.

I was starting to lose patience with this girl.

"Do NOT ignore me!" Mr. 5 shouted. He stuck his finger in his nose, pulled out a very large booger, and flicked it at us.

I was about to call on the water again when Zoro jumped in front of me, sword drawn. He sliced the booger in two, and it exploded when the two halves hit the road behind us.

"YUCK!" Zoro shouted. "I JUST CUT SNOT!"

I rolled my eyes. "Took you long enough to get here, moron." I said.

Zoro whipped around and snapped, "You didn't wait for me! You left me to deal with Nami on my own!"

I nodded. "Wasn't that obvious?"

Zoro rolled his eyes dramatically. "Whatever." he said. "By the way, you shouldn't be wandering off on your own in your condition. You've been sick, so you need to stay out of trouble."

I was about to make a scathing comment when I heard a groan. "I found you... Zoro..."

I looked up. "Oh! Luffy!" I said. I paused. "They threw a party for you, didn't they...?"

Luffy was standing there, glaring. He was about ten times wider than he normally is, so I figured he'd just been pigging out.

Zoro grinned. "Hey, Luffy! I was wondering if you'd come and give us a hand. We've got it under control, though."

Luffy growled. "Zoro! I am going to _kill_ you!"

Zoro,Wednesday, and I just stared at him. After a short pause, we all shouted, "WHAAAT?!"

"You heard me!" Luffy shouted. "I am so going to kick your ungrateful little ass!"

Zoro paled. "Ungrateful?"

Luffy nodded. "How could you do this to the people who were so nice to us and gave us food?! They were nice, and you repay them by cutting them up!"

Zoro put up his hands. "Hold it, Luffy." he said. "There's something you don't know!"

"Shut up!" Luffy shouted. He raised his fist, and punched at Zoro. If Zoro hadn't ducked, it would have broken his neck.

"Damn it, Luffy!" Zoro shouted. "Are you trying to kill me?!"

Luffy nodded. "Yeah! Die!"

Wednesday and I stared in exasperation. "What the hell...?" I growled. Something about this wasn't right. I mean, I'd seen Zoro and Sanji fight like this before, but Luffy? No way. If I knew my idiot brother, this was probably going to be a huge misunderstanding. Something really stupid.

Mr. 5 and miss Valentine looked at each other in complete confusion. "Well well well..." Miss Valentine said. "They're just fighting each other. Now we only have one little kid to deal with."

I took up a fighting stance. "This little kid could easily kick your asses." I growled.

Wednesday looked at me in confusion. "Why...?" she asked. "Why are you doing this?"

I looked over my shoulder at her. "Tube-ossan asked us to help you." I said. "He called you... Vivi, isn't it?"

Wednesday nodded. She put her hand over her mouth. "Oh, Igaram..." she muttered. "So, you're actually going to help?"

"How many times do I have to say it?" I groaned.

During this dialogue, Luffy and Zoro were still fighting like crazy. They had just clashed, steel pushing against rubber.

"So," Zoro said. "Shall we see which is stronger? Your rubbery limbs, or my steel?"

"Bring it on!" Luffy shouted.

Zoro slouched. I knew what he was going to do. "Dragon... Twister!"

Luffy flew into the air, spinning like crazy. When he was as high as the wind would take him, he aimed a Gum-Gum pistol at Zoro's shoulder. It caught him, and sent him flying into a wall.

Miss Valentine jumped out of the way. "We'll deal with you while your friends fight each other!" she laughed. She was floating about fifty feet above me. "I'll crush you into the ground!" she shouted.

Mr. 5 lunged towards me.

I stepped up, and raised my arms. The water was right behind me, and it struggled. I wasn't about to take 'no' for an answer. I insisted.

Finally! the water responded. It started swirling in two large whirlpools behind me.

"Water dragon spiral tunnel!"

The water rose from the whirlpool in two tendrils. They each grew a dragon head, and charged mr.5 and miss Valentine. They ran through their centres, like a lance. A lance that sent them both flying into the mud buildings on the other end of the road.

I sighed with relief and let my arms drop.

Vivi stared at me like I had grown an extra head. "That was terrifying." she said.

I turned around and bowed. "Why thank-you, your highness." Then, my senses pricked. "Look out!" I slammed into her, knocking her out of the way.

Only just in time, too. Zoro flew past, right where we had been standing a few seconds before, and landed in the water with a splash!

I was going to help him, but he resurfaced fast enough, pulling himself back on shore, coughing and spluttering. "Okay, that's it!" he said.

The two of them lunged. Luffy pulling his arm back, Zoro aiming an attack that looked like Oni Giri.

"We need to stop them!" Vivi yelped. "They'll kill each other!"

I raised an eyebrow at her. "I know them well enough to know they won't actually kill each other. Besides, if you tried to get in the middle of that, well, getting in the middle of that would be like stepping into a meat grinder."

Then, a silhouette appeared behind them. _uh-oh..._

"AAARGH! STOP!"

There was a loud **clonk!** and Luffy and Zoro fell to the ground, clutching rapidly rising welts on their heads.

"Or Nami will show up." I muttered. I turned to Vivi and smiled. "Don't worry. Everything's under control."

Vivi didn't look too convinced.

* * *

"A reward?"

"Yeah," Nami was trying, and failing miserably, to suppress a grin. "In return for bringing you home, I'd like one billion berries."

"Nami." I said. "That's a bit harsh, don't you think?"

Nami looked at me like I'd said a disgusting swear word. "No."

Vivi looked uncomfortable. "Do you know much about Alabasta kingdom?"

Nami shook her head.

"Alabasta is a desert country. Peaceful and prosperous. Or at least it was."

"Was?" I asked. "What's wrong?" I didn't understand the whole economics and politics thing.

A shadow crossed Vivi's face. "Right now... Alabasta is in the middle of a civil war."

"Oh." I said.

Nami sighed. "Well, I guess it makes sense. You wouldn't have too much money laying around during a civil war."

During this dialogue, about five feet away, Luffy and Zoro were having a conversation of their own.

"Shishishi!" Luffy laughed. "Oh! Why didn't you say so, Zoro? I thought you'd beaten them up because they didn't serve the food you wanted or something!"

Zoro grew shark teeth. "WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU THINK THAT?!"

Nami whipped around. "GUYS! SHUT UP!"

The boys stopped and looked at us, their attention finally back to where it should be.

"One day," Vivi continued, looking no less uncomfortable. "I caught wind of a secret organisation called Baroque Works. They say their goal is to create a utopia."

"Uh-oh." I said. "There's this policy I live by. Never trust people who say they want the best for everyone."

Vivi nodded darkly. "That's just their cover story. Their real ambition is to take over Alabasta kingdom!"

She stopped and took a deep breath. "When I caught wind of this, I went to Igaram to ask for help. We joined Baroque Works and learned the boss' identity."

Luffy's eyes shone. "Cool! Who is it?"

Vivi threw up her hands. "NO! Ask me anything but that!"

Nami laughed nervously. "Yeah. I don't fancy being on Baroque Works' hit list." she said. "Besides, the guy's probably really strong. I don't want to know."

Of course, Vivi had to continue. "That's right, you don't. You don't stand a chance against one of the shichibukai. Against Crocodile."

There was a moment of stunned silence.

"You just said it." Zoro said.

I felt a chill down my spine. One of the shichibukai? I couldn't tell if the chill was a chill of excitement or or fear.

Nami started shaking Vivi by the shoulders. "WHY DID YOU SAY THAT?! I DON'T WANNA DIE YET!"

"I'm sor-ry!" Vivi managed.

Luffy laughed. "One of the shichibukai! That's awesome!"

Zoro nodded. "We'll have a good fight on our hands."

I managed a small nod. "It's gonna be an interesting adventure, that's for sure." But I couldn't fight back a feeling of dread. "What if he's as strong as Mihawk?" I asked.

Zoro gave me a very stern look. "We have no way of knowing until we see him, do we? What's gotten you so shaken up?"

I took a deep breath. I wasn't sure if I should tell them about my ability to see auras or not, because they'd want an explanation, and I didn't understand it at all.

Fortunately, Vivi answered my question. "Crocodile's bounty was removed after he became one of the shichibukai, but before that, it peaked at eighty million berries."

"Wow!" Luffy shouted. "Eighty million?! That is awesome!"

Nami stood up. "I am so out of here!" she snapped. She stormed off, ranting.

"Where are you going?" I called.

"They don't know what I look like! There is no reason for me to stay!"

There was a slight pause, and a vulture and an otter in purple pajamas flew off into the night.

"What...?" I said, staring after them.

Nami came stomping back. "No point now! What was with that otter and the bird?!"

"She's back." Luffy said.

"Where was she planning on going, anyway?" Zoro deadpanned.

* * *

"So, what's the plan?" I asked.

"Well," Vivi said. "I guess we'll be taking your ship. Then we need to set a course for Alabasta, as quickly as we can."

Suddenly, I heard the crunch of a boot on stone. "Princess Vivi..."

We all turned around.

I nearly had a heart attack.

Tube-ossan was standing behind us, carrying three rolled up blankets with faces drawn on them. He was wearing a blue striped spaghetti strap top, short shorts, and a jacket. He looked like a male Vivi who had gotten old but never quite got over cross dressing.

Vivi looked shocked. "Igaram..." she said. "What are you-?"

Tube-ossan smiled. "I am going to act as a decoy, so you can escape, princess." he said. "If you die, so does hope for Alabasta."

"So that's what your plan is?" I asked Tube-ossan. "You're going to try to lure them after you? That's so crazy it might actually work."

We walked to the shore, where there was a small boat docked. Tube-ossan smiled as the boat drifted away. "Princess, may we meet again in our homeland."

We stood at the shore and watched for a while, Vivi smiling, but I could tell she was nervous.

I clapped my hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't worry. He knows what he's doing. And you can count on us, we'll get you home."

Vivi nodded.

We were just about to turn away, when I felt a wave of power surge through the sea. "HIT THE DECK!" I shouted.

Nami caught Vivi and shoved her down before landing on all fours beside her.

Zoro was next, grabbing Luffy by the neck and me by the waist, shoving us down, then hitting the ground on his stomach, sandwiched between us.

The blast was so strong it ruffled my hair as the wave passed over us.

We stood up shakily, and stared at the ocean.

The boat was nothing more than burning flotsam, bobbing on the surface of the disturbed water.

"Oh god..." I breathed.

Vivi stared blankly at the wreckage, her hair whipping around in the wind created by the explosion. She seemed to be in a daze. Then, I noticed the trickle of blood running down her chin from where she had bitten her lip.

Nami noticed this, and a pained look crossed her face. She gave Vivi a hug. "We'll get you home, I promise! These guys don't look like much, but they pull through! Baroque Works? Lame! Crocodile?! Ha! They'll beat them all!"

She grabbed Vivi's hand and led her towards the Merry.

Luffy and Zoro ran after them.

"C'mon, Koe!" Luffy shouted. "We need to go! Let's go!"

I nodded. "I'm coming."

I stared at the burning ship, what was left of the ruined sail flapping in the sea wind. I blinked hard. Tube-ossan was a decent guy, even I could tell that.

I concentrated. I had never wanted to see auras before, it scared me. Now, I wanted to put it to good use. Everyone seemed to have their own unique aura, and if I ever ran into who did this...

**SNAP!**

I opened my eyes. Everything was black and white. Except for a bright, violet light.

**Fizzz...**

Everything snapped back into focus, or a different kind of focus. Colours and finer details returned.

I clenched my fist. If I ever found the owner of this violet aura, I was going to make them pay.

**Luffy: Hmmm... A bucket!**

**Usopp: A bucket doesn't have holes! Idiot! **

**Zoro: ...**

**Sanji: What could it be...?**

**Luffy: A fish!**

**Usopp, Zoro, and Sanji: No. **

**Koe: They'll be at it for a while... Please review! XD**


	38. Chapter 38

**Herrooo all you Voice readers! Man, I just flew through writing this one! +**

**Well, I don't own One Piece, only my OCs. **

**Luffy, Usopp, and Sanji: WAIT!**

**FM13: What can I do for you guys? **

**Sanji: The riddle, Frosty-chan! The riddle!**

**Luffy: It's a sponge!**

**Usopp: Hey! I was supposed to say that, remember?**

**FM13: Wait... It took all three of you to figure it out?**

Chapter 38

I ran down the road towards the Merry. We were running out of time.

When I got there, Nami and Vivi were arguing loudly.

"We don't have time for this!"

"I'm not leaving without him!"

"What's going on?" I asked, screeching to a halt. "We need to get going."

Nami snapped her head around. "Her duck's gone missing!" she snapped. "Now she's refusing to leave without him!"

On board Merry, Zoro leaned over the rail. He stuck his thumb at a large duck. "You mean this duck?" he asked.

Nami and Vivi grew shark teeth. "He's _here_?!"

Zoro shrugged. "Got here before I did."

"Well," I said. "We'd better get on board."

We were just about finished getting ready when I noticed something. "Where are Rubber-boy, Needle Nose, and Dartboard Brow?" I asked.

Zoro looked at me, confused. "What on earth are you asking?" he said.

Oh, right. I had called them english nicknames. Of course Zoro wouldn't understand.

"Where are Luffy, Usopp, and Sanji?"

Zoro shrugged, propping a crate on his shoulder. "Damned if I know." he said.

Suddenly, I cocked an ear. The sound of scraping, grunting and complaining filled the air. "Luffy! Stop that!"

"Sdob dragging by dose!"

Suddenly, there was a crash. Sanji and Usopp landed on the deck, and Luffy landed on his feet right beside me. "Alright!" he shouted. "Set sail!"

I nodded, and ran to the mast. I started fumbling with the rope.

Zoro stepped up to me. "Why don't you climb up the mast and I'll handle wrestling with the sail on deck?"

I frowned uncomfortably. I didn't like the idea, but I nodded. I gripped the rigging and hauled myself up.

Nami called, "Unfurl the sails!"

I scrambled along the top of the mast, and quickly undid the ties.

Zoro hauled on the rope, and the sail unfurled, caught the wind, and we started sailing along the narrow channel between the shores of Whiskey Peak.

We exited the channel, and sailed into a wide delta, overlooking the sea.

I overlooked my fear of heights for almost a minute. It was so beautiful from up there... The sun was just rising, it's rays catching the surface of the sea, turning it's shimmering waves all the colours of the rainbow. Silhouettes of gulls dotted the horizon.

Then, I frowned. _Remember... Somewhere out there is the guy who killed Tube-ossan._

"Be careful." someone said from below deck. "We don't want to run aground on any sandbars."

I heard Nami say, "Yeah, you're right." Then, she gasped.

Her gasp was followed by a collective gasp.

I looked down and saw who had spoken. It was a woman, in her late twenties, sitting on the rail overlooking the deck. She wore a purple vest that was just a little too revealing to be decent - at least in my book - , purple short shorts, and purple knee high boots. A purple cowboy hat was perched on her head.

"Who are you?!" Nami shouted.

"Well..." the woman said. She smirked, then broke into a chuckle.

I felt a chill run through my spine. I closed my eyes, and tried to call on my power.

**SNAP**!

Everything turned black and white. Coloured flames burst into life all around me. My silver tealey aura flickered around me. Luffy's cherry red aura, Zoro's steely green aura, Nami's tangerine aura, Sanji's yellow aura and Usopp's brown aura (which were slightly faded, so I guess Nami had knocked them out), and Vivi's sky-blue aura peppered the deck.

Sitting on the rail, overlooking them was a violet aura.

My blood turned from ice to fire. This was the one who killed Tube-ossan. "Everyone!" I shouted. "Look out! She's-"

The woman cut off my shout with a slight chuckle. "Oh, yes. You're referring to Mr. 8. A decoy... That was almost cute."

As quick as a heatbeat, everyone drew their weapons. Usopp and Sanji, who had woken up, obviously, pointed guns at her.

"What are you doing here?!" Luffy shouted.

The woman chuckled.

Vivi snarled. "Answer him! What are you doing here?! Miss All Sunday?"

I called on the ocean. Tendrils of water rose up as high as the mast.

Miss All Sunday frowned. "I would appreciate it if you didn't point those at me." she said. I felt something push me off the mast.

My weird aura state fizzled out, and I fell towards the deck. I felt fear close my throat. I shut my eyes and... _thud._

I opened my eyes. Zoro had caught me just before I hit the deck. He set me down on the wooden boards. "There." he said. "Now you can't complain."

I was torn between thanking him for catching me, and smacking all his teeth out.

Miss All Sunday chuckled at our antics. "My, I can see you two haven't been together long."

"We haven't been together at all!" I snapped.

Unfortunately, it was Sanji that rose to my defense. "There is no way Koe-chwaan would ever-"

"Thank-you, Sanji, that's enough!"

All Sunday chuckled and shrugged.

Luffy's hat flew off his head.

All Sunday caught it and put it on her hat. "Hm hm hm hm..." she chuckled. "Nice hat."

Luffy growled. "Give me back my hat! Get off my ship!"

I stepped in front of him. I raised my arms. More tendrils of water swirled around my head. "What is human life to you, anyway, Baroque Works?"

All Sunday looked at me with a serene smile on her evil face. She said one word. "Worthless."

Vivi drew a blade that looked a bit like a peacock feather on a string. "YOU KILLED HIM!" she shouted.

She jumped towards All Sunday, but something tossed her back. She hit the deck with a thud.

Nami ran over to her. "Are you alright?!" she asked.

Vivi sat up, nodding. "Yeah... What on earth..?"

I willed the water tendrils to sail towards All Sunday. Obviously a head-on charge wasn't going to work.

Suddenly, something grabbed me by the neck and both my wrists. I was violently pushed and pulled to the deck.

The tendril of water that would have gone right through her heart caught Luffy's hat off the top of her head.

I willed the water to flow towards me, and thankfully it responded. I reached out and caught Luffy's hat. I stood up. "Here." I said, holding the hat out to him.

Luffy grinned and took it. "Thanks!" he said.

Miss All Sunday frowned like this wasn't much fun anymore. She sighed and tossed something to the deck.

"Look out!" Usopp shouted.

Every one of my nerves was on high alert. I calmed down when I noticed what it was. "Hey..." I said. "It's a log pose." I said.

All Sunday chuckled again. "Not quite. It's an eternal pose. A pose that locks onto an island's magnetic field and saves it. It's set for an island just east of Alabasta. It would be wise for you to take it... The next island is... Little Garden."

I frowned. "Little Garden?" I said. "What's wrong with that?"

Luffy stooped and picked up the eternal pose. Then, as if moved by a sudden impulse, he took a lob shot. The eternal pose sailed over Miss All Sunday's head and landed in the ocean.

Nami cuffed Luffy over the head. "Why the hell did you do that, Luffy?!" she shrieked.

Luffy pouted in All Sunday's direction. "I don't like her. She killed Tube-ossan. We're not accepting help from her."

I smiled. Luffy was being stubborn, but I had to say I agreed with him. I didn't want help from her any more than I wanted an enema.

All Sunday smiled. "All right, then..." she said. She jumped off the side of the ship.

"What?!" Half the crew shouted.

I leaned over the side. "Hey..." I said. "It's a turtle."

A turtle is a bit of an understatement. It was a twenty-foot long turtle with a bowler hat on it's head and a shaded seat on his shell. A small cigarette stuck out of it's mouth.

All Sunday landed on his shell. She sat down on the seat. "Let's go, Bunshi." she said.

The turtle started swimming away.

"Well." I said. "Now what?"

Nami sighed. "Well... At least we know where we're going... Little Garden."

* * *

Despite All Sunday's warning, Little Garden was actually kind of pretty. A large, leafy forest covered the entire island. Birds flew around the forest canopy. A small channel leading to the centre of the island. We finally moored our ship in the middle of the island.

The trees loomed over our ship, harboring the owners of strange, screechy noises.

"Well..." I said, staring into the dense jungle. "Not exactly little, but it's still impressive."

Nami and Usopp were staring at the jungle like it was going to come alive and eat them. Of course, right now, I couldn't blame them. The jungle did seem like it had a consciousness of it's own. Very much alive.

"Sanji!" Luffy shouted. "Lunch!"

Sanji rolled his eyes. "Why?"

Luffy grinned. "I'm going to look around!"

"What?!" Nami shrieked. "Luffy, have you lost your mind?!"

Vivi and her duck, Caroo stepped up. "Actually," she said. "I'll come too. I want to see what it's like out there. So, two lunches please. And a drink for Caroo."

Sanji did his wet noodle act. "HAI! VIVI-CHWAAN!"

I rolled my eyes. "You're kidding me..." I chuckled.

A few minutes later, Luffy, Vivi, and Caroo were standing on the shore. Luffy and Vivi carried a lunchbox each, and there was a small barrel full of some kind of drink around Caroo's neck.

"All right!" Luffy shouted. "See ya!"

As they turned away, I had to fight off a sense of foreboding. Something wasn't right about this forest. I bopped myself on the head. "Don't be such an idiot, Koe." I said in english. "It's Luffy you're thinking about. They'll be fine."

* * *

Luffy and Vivi hadn't been gone long when Zoro walked up to the side and jumped onto the island.

"Hey! Zoro!" Usopp called. "Where are you going?!"

Zoro looked up at the deck. "I'm going for a walk."

Usopp paled. "Going for a walk?! That won't end well."

Zoro gave Usopp a very miffed look. "How the hell can a walk not end well?" he growled.

I shrugged from my seat on the rail. "Here's a scenario. Completely hypothetical, of course. You go five paces down the path, turn left because you think it's west, you get yourself completely lost, all while only being a grand total of fifteen paces away from the ship."

Zoro flashed me the finger, which caused me to double over laughing.

Sanji stepped out of the kitchen. Upon noticing Zoro off the ship, he said, "Oh, Zoro. We're a little low on meat right now. If you come across something in the woods that looks edible, bring it back with you."

Zoro smirked. "Okay. I'll be sure to catch something that you'd never be able to bag. I can see why you're asking me."

I closed my eyes in anticipation. This was going to be one interesting show.

Sanji stepped up and put one foot on the rail. "What are you trying to say?" he growled. "That you could make a bigger catch than I could?"

Zoro nodded.

"FINE! Consider yourself challenged!"

I figured they were going to take a few shots at each other before they set off, so I closed my eyes and waited for the sounds of scuffling to begin. what I didn't expect was for the entire island to shake, and the smell of ash to fill the air. I sprang up. "What the devil-"

I looked up. Just visible over the tops of the trees was a volcano.

"Hey, Moss-ball! Dartboard brow!" I called. I used their english nicknames just to annoy Zoro.

Zoro snapped his head towards me. "What?! Would you stop calling me that?!"

Sanji, however, just did his wet noodle act. "Aww... Koe-chwaann... What a nice nickname for me! This must mean-"

_You're an idiot._ I thought.

I rolled my eyes and pointed to the erupting volcano. "Why don't you let your deadline be the next eruption? That should give you both plenty of time."

They nodded, then ran off, tossing insults at each other until they were out of earshot.

I sighed, then vaulted over the side of the ship.

"Not you too..." Usopp said. "What are you doing?"

I grinned. "I think I'll participate in their little hunting contest."

Despite Usopp's protests, I took a deep breath, shouldered my bag, where I kept my book, my favourite grey quill, and my bottle of green ink. As much as I wanted to have a crack at the hunting contest, I wanted to see what the flora and fauna of the island looked like. This was the first island I'd ever visited without some form of civilization. I wanted to make the best of it.

I strolled through the dense undergrowth for about half an hour, swatting away bugs and wrestling with huge broad-leafed plants, before I found the perfect spot. A tiny clearing, about a metre across, with just a large enough break in the canopy to let a substantial ray of sunlight through.

I stopped in front of a very interesting looking tree. It looked like a cross between a tree and a giant fern. "A conifer..." I muttered, staring in awe at the tree that I thought had been extinct for years.

I pulled out my book and ink bottle and quill, and opened my book to a fresh page.

I spent the next few minutes sketching the conifer the same way I sketched some of our memorable opponents. After I finished the conifer, I flipped back to the pages I'd reserved for the fight with Arlong as I continued on my way. I had drawn all the fishmen, instead of just arlong, because I found them so interesting. How did they manage to evolve gills as well as lungs? How did they get so freakishly strong? Those were just two of the many questions I had concerning these strange people.

My train of thought derailed when I put my foot in something, making me jump. The next few milliseconds were absolute confusion, as I was trying to catch my book before it hit the puddle. Sure, I could've just used my devil fruit power to get the water out of the pages, but I'd prefer not to have to do that.

I calmed down when I realised I had just stepped in a very deep puddle. The salty water had soaked my foot all the way up to my knee.

I got down on my knees and stared into the water, it's surface tough to see through due to ripples (the puddle, not my face). "Aha!" I said. I knew I'd stepped on something hard!

I stuck my arms in the puddle until it was up to my chest, and closed my fingers around something bumpy and smooth. I pulled hard, and out from the depths rose... something.

It looked like a squid stuffed in a snail's shell. It was about as big as a basketball. It had long, blueish green tentacles, it's shell was an odd shade of amber. I probably would've dropped it if it weren't for his eye. It was large and lidless, staring up at me with a vacant yet not vacant expression.

"An ammonite..." I said. "He's so cute."

The ammonite stared at me with his lidless eye.

"Hey, buddy." I said. "What're you doing in there?"

The ammonite didn't respond.

I grinned. "I know!" I said. "I'll take you along! You can be the crew's pet! Our new nakama!"

The ammonite's gaze flickered from me to the bag at my side to my face again.

I took that as a yes. "You need a name." I said, clutching him to my chest. "How about... Nigel! That's a cool name!"

Nigel didn't do anything. He just waved his tentacles and moved his eye.

I grinned. "C'mon, Nigel." I said. "Let's go find us a dinosaur to catch."

* * *

We splashed along a swampy area, me carrying Nigel, Nigel waving his tentacles now and then. Finally, we broke through the dense jungle into a very large clearing. There were two mountains in the clearing, one on either side of the clearing. In the centre of it all was the volcano, a few kilometers away.

"Wow..." I said.

There was a tree trunk not too far away.

"Hey, Nigel." I said. "What do you say to a bit of rest?" I moved to the tree trunk and flopped down like a rag doll. I had been walking for over an hour and my feet were sore. I leaned back and closed my eyes, letting my hearing do the exploring. I heard an odd booming sound that might've been a laugh. I rubbed my forehead. "Must be the heat..." I muttered. Then, I heard something else. Someone's voice. It sounded far away, coming from the thick of the jungle.

"Hey! Leggo you little demon rhino!"

I opened an eye. "That sounded like Zoro." I said.

Nigel looked up at me, trying to make eye contact.

I shook my head and stroked his shell. "No, Nigel." I said. "Zoro's a big boy. He can take care of himself."

The tree trunk shifted, and then stopped again. Wait a minute...

I looked up.

A large head and small eyes peered back at me.

I nearly jumped out of my skin. It was a... a ... "A BRACHIOSAURUS! SWEET!" Of course I would run into something like a brachiosaurus out in the open. You can't shove a big animal into a small jungle.

Then, I remembered something. The hunting contest. "Hey!" I called. "Are you tasty?" I placed Nigel out of harm's way, and called on the water from a nearby watering hole. "It's nothing personal." I said. "It's just that you'd taste pretty good with some saffron and rice! Oh! And maybe some lemon."

I made one spear like motion. "Azure lance."

The water spear arced towards the colossus, taking it out in one shot.

I did a fist pump. "BOO-Yeah!" I shouted. Then, I smirked. "Let's see the jungle boys beat that."

* * *

For the next few hours, I just stayed in the clearing, resting against the humongous dinosaur corpse that I'd have to drag to the ship. I figured I'd just use my devil fruit power to move it, you know, put water under it and move it that way.

Finally, I stood up. It was so damn hot out there. It would be a lot cooler in the jungle, I knew.

"Hey, Nigel." I said. "What do you say to a bit of shade, eh?"

Nigel flipped a tentacle. I took that as a yes.

I took him into the shade, and then, since it was nice and cool, and my feet didn't hurt so much anymore, I decided to go a little further.

It took me about ten minutes to get hopelessly lost. "Well..." I grumbled. "That's just perfect... I've pulled a Zoro."

I pushed through the dense foliage, looking for a way back to the clearing, and ran into someone I'd never expect.

Zoro was leaning against a tree, his arms folded across his chest.

"Hey, Moss-ball!" I said, stepping up to him. "I guess we're in the same boat."

Zoro didn't say anything. He didn't even move.

"Where's your catch?" I asked. "The deadline's coming up fast."

Again, no response.

I put my hand on his shoulder. "Hey! Mr. Narcoleptic!" I snapped. "Can ya hear me?!"

I noticed, too late, that Zoro's shoulder was hard. Not the muscle hard, but hard as steel. 'Zoro' wasn't even breathing.

I tried to pull away, but something held my hand in place.

Then, something hit me over the head, and I blacked out.

**Luffy: Hey! Koe! I've got one for you! I'm tasty when fried, when I'm alive I'm no good, but I'm really good off the bone!**

**Koe and FM13: Meat.**

**Luffy: How did you guess?**

**FM13: Call it a hunch. **

**Koe: Please review! XD **


	39. Chapter 39

**Hello, all you Voice readers!**

**I got so many really nice reviews last chapter! (sniffs happily) I hit the 100 review mark! Yay!**

**So, I'm going to respond to all your nice reviews for chapter 38!**

* * *

**Galymed: I'm so glad you're enjoying the story. It's always good to hear that my OC isn't too overpowered. That's one hazard of giving a character control over water. I know what you mean when you say you don't like it when devil fruit users can swim. As for the cliffhanger... Sorry about that. I wanted to make the Little Garden arc one chapter, but it was just too long. **

**animagirl: Thanks for the review! I bet you'll really like the chapters when they're in the desert if you like Sanji and Koe. **

**Molly Grace 16: Does anyone know what Robin's going to do? (laughs) As for your question about Keith and Koe meeting again, it won't be too long. It is after Alabasta, though. **

**pizzafan 123: Good thing Koe has a hard head! So glad you like the story. **

**Shiningheart of Thunderclan: Yes, they do need to stop. Not that they will. I love writing their fights. If I'm suffering from writer's block, I just think, 'where can I put an argument between those two?' **

* * *

**FM13: So, thanks to everyone who reviewed! Now, Koe, say the disclaimer so we can get on with the chapter!**

**Koe: So, frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters! Only her OCs. **

Chapter 39

Okay, I haven't drunk a drop of alcohol in my life, but I'm pretty sure the pain I felt when I came to was as close to a hangover as you can get. My head was pounding and my ears were ringing, and even the odd shuffling noises seemed like nails being dragged across a chalkboard.

"Wha..." I groaned. I tried to move my arms to hoist myself up, but I found that my wrists were cuffed together by something that felt cold and hard as steel.

What the hell had just happened? I had no clue where I was, or what was going on. All I knew was, it was dark. I squinted. I could just barely make out two shapes in the darkness. "Hey..." I groaned.

Then, I heard a shuffling behind me. Some voice I didn't recognize chuckled. "Well, one's awake already. Hm him hm. Sorry, kid, but we don't need you just yet."

There was a thud, a sharp pain at the base of my skull, and I blacked out.

* * *

(flashback starts)

I stepped out of Party's Bar. It was a beautiful day. The sun beat down on the wooden roofs. There was only one problem.

"Phew!" I said, wiping the sweat off my brow. Yep. It was a scorcher. It was nine in the morning and it must have been thirty degrees outside. I figured if it got any hotter, the houses would catch fire.

I decided to go to the docks and soak my feet.

Luffy was inside the bar talking to Makino. They were staying inside where it was semi-cool.

I had made it about halfway down the road when I ran into someone's legs. That's the problem with being five years old. You're so short, you don't really run into people. You bang your head on their knees.

I staggered backwards, only to be caught by a large hand.

"Gomen." I heard someone say.

I looked up. "Shanks!" I said happily.

Shanks grinned at me, his straw hat slightly lopsided. He wasn't wearing his dark cloak that day, though I couldn't blame him for that.

I grabbed Shanks' hand and started pulling him down the road. We reached Party's Bar. I pushed through the swinging doors. "Luffy!" I shouted. "Shanks is here!"

Luffy, who probably only understood two words of what I had just said, whipped around on his stool, jumped off, and ran towards us. He started talking to Shanks so fast it made my head hurt.

Shanks shook his head, then smirked and poked Luffy in the forehead.

Luffy pouted.

Shanks grinned, then held something out from behind his back. Fishing rods.

"Fishing?!" I asked, bouncing on the balls of my feet excitedly.

Shanks nodded. "Hai... Fishing." he said.

I shouted "Yay!" and Luffy shouted "Yatta!" and we ran for the docks.

We boarded a small fishing boat, and headed out into the shallows.

Shanks showed me how to cast a line, which must have been rather difficult for him since I didn't understand what he was saying. After a bunch of boat rocking, tangled fishing line, untangling said fishing line, and a near-fatal incident with a fishing hat Shanks had brought (Don't ask), we were sitting on the side of the boat, our lines cast, and our lures bobbing merrily in the surf.

Fishing is amazing, in case you don't know. If you like peace and quiet, fishing is unrivalled. If you like socializing with your friends, while delightful anticipation swirls around inside you, go fishing with Luffy and Shanks. Fishing is like a treasure hunt.

A few hours later, when I was starting to get a little bored, something tugged at my line. "Oh!" I shouted. "I got one!" I started to pull at the line, but the tugging just got harder, and harder, and harder. I yelped as I was nearly pulled off the boat.

Shanks moved and grabbed my fishing rod. He was standing behind me, his hands over mine. He pulled so hard, I thought the line would snap from the pressure.

Finally, from the sea rose a fish that was twice as long as I was tall. It had silvery scales, a big, gaping mouth, and large, round eyes.

Luffy stared at it in amazement. "SUGOI!" he shouted.

I grinned hugely.

Then, the scene dissolved into mist.

(flashback ends)

* * *

I woke up when someone, shrouded in shadow, grabbed my arm and hauled me to my feet. Then, something was violently torn from my eyes, and bright sunlight nearly blinded me. Of course I'd been blindfolded. The random light finally coalesced into shapes.

_Look again._ my brain said.

_You've hit your head too many times._ my eyes retorted. _You're definitely seeing what you're seeing._

I was in the clearing. It was easy to tell. My bagged brachiosaur was just a few yards off to the left.

In the middle of the field was a HUGE guy. He must have been twenty-five feet tall! His metal and leather armor was in tatters and there was a huge bloody slash across his chest.

Beside him was another giant. This one was conscious, but he was on the ground, white stuff covering his back, his hands, arms, legs, and feet. what was it, toothpaste? No. The giant was struggling against the white stuff, and it wasn't yielding.

"Iron, maybe..." I said aloud.

"Hm hm hm..." Someone at my side chuckled. "Not iron, young lady. Wax."

I turned. Standing behind me was... Well... Need I say it? A weirdo. He had a box like jaw, and he had the physique of a guy who hadn't lifted anything over ten pounds in his life.

I frowned. I took a look at the white iron that looked like a candle around my ankles, then at the giants, then (I can't believe I didn't notice it before) a large white wax cake-like thing with a large candle sticking out the top, and a rotating jack-o-lantern on top. Then, I looked back at the guy.

"I take it you're Mr. 3, and you've got the power of the wax-wax fruit."

The weirdo took a step back. "How on earth did you figure it out?!" He yelped.

"Gee, I don't know..." I muttered. "Was it the fact that you told me this was wax just now, or maybe it was your hairdo."

I'm not kidding. This guy had a black 3 on his head.

That's when I noticed Zoro, Nami, and Vivi on the giant candle thing. They were arranged facing outward, and they looked a lot like birthday candles.

Mr. 3 laughed. "Now." he said. "Join your brethren!"

In a swirl of white wax, I felt myself get lifted off the ground. When the wax cleared, I was standing between Zoro and Nami, my feet completely encased in the stuff.

"So," Zoro said. "You were caught too."

I nodded. "Yeah, I'd rather not explain how that happened." I replied.

From a few feet away, someone laughed in a very annoying, high pitched voice. "So, Mr. 3, you caught the little brat too."

I rubbed my temples. "You're kidding me..." I groaned. "If it isn't Mr. Snot Bomb and Miss Killer Citrus."

Sure enough, Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine were standing next to mr. 3. Both of them were frowning.

"So," I said, rubbing the sore spots on my wrists. "You people are following us. What's going on here? What the hell do you want?!"

Mr. 3 laughed. "Why, we want what the organization has wanted from the start. Secrecy. Of course, you weak-minded fools were easy to trap. A real criminal uses his mind to trap his victims. Weaklings like Mr. 5 and Miss Valentine can be slightly useful."

5 and Valentine didn't look too happy about that comment.

Beside us, the giant growled. "you..." He growled. "Did you do this to Dorry?!"

Dorry? I suppose that was the name of the other giant.

Mr. 3 chuckled. "Of course." he said. "you should be happy. You finally won, after a hundred years! I'm sure your tears of joy are well fitting."

I leaned forward to see past Zoro and Vivi. The giant was crying, but I got the feeling those weren't tears of joy. "Y-you..." He sniffed. "what do you know of the ways of Elbaf?! To die an honourable death, that's one thing, but this..."

Mr. 3 snorted. "Oh, spare me." He said, waving his hand up and down. "All your talk of honour, it makes me sick."

Okay, I had absolutely no idea what Elbaf was, or what those giants were fighting about, but I did know one thing. This man was poking a finger at their honour, and had somehow caused this giant's friend's suffering.

I felt a surge of irritation. Maybe there wasn't too much water around there, so I had to think of another option. I swished some spit around in my mouth, and then, taking aim at 3, let rip.

The spit ball pierced his shoulder.

He let out n oddly satisfying howl of pain.

Valentine and 5 didn't make much of a move to help him.

3 staggered backwards, clutching at his shoulder. With a growl, he launched a large ball of white wax at me. It hit me on the mouth and immediately solidified.

I couldn't move my mouth.

"Koe!" Zoro said, his voice edged with concern. "You alright?"

I nodded.

"Hey!" Nami snapped at Mr. 3. "You'll pay for that!"

Mr 3 laughed. "Oh, will I? What can you simpletons do about it? You're going to become great works of art!"

That's when I felt something hot and squishy land lightly on my shoulder. I winced, then looked up.

White flecks of hot wax were falling from the top of the candle thing like searing hot snow. They stuck in my hair, on my skin, and in the worst cases, got in my eyes.

I wanted to say, 'what the hell is with this falling wax?' but I couldn't.

Nami looked around furtively. "What's going on?"

Mr 3 laughed. "This is my finest creation! The falling wax will encase you! Inside and outside your bodies! Soon, it will be hard for you to breathe! You'll become the perfect wax statues!"

Nami blanched. "what?!"

I had to admit, that was a freaky idea. That's when I felt a prickling at the back of my nasal passage. I sneezed into my hand. There were little bits of wax on my palm.

The thought suddenly occurred to me that, no matter how fast it would take Zoro, Nami, and Vivi were solidifying, I would solidify much faster due to having only one way to breathe at that moment.

And we were getting coated in wax very quickly.

I suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to throw up. The wax! It was at the back of my throat!

I reeled.

Zoro caught my shoulder as I slumped towards him. "Hey!" he said sharply. "You're getting it a lot worse than us, aren't you?"

I nodded. The entire world was starting to get fuzzy.

Zoro looked over at the giant. "Hey." he said. "You still got some fight left in you?"

The giant grunted. "Yeah. I could probably still fight."

Zoro smirked. "Well, I've got an idea. A plan of attack."

I felt my spirits rise again. Good, Zoro had a plan...

"We fight." Zoro said.

Of course, Nami lit into him. "How are you going to fight, anyway?! We're stuck, in case you didn't notice."

Zoro smiled (geez... I hate that look) and drew two of his swords. He turned them, blades down.

I realised what he was about to do. I leaned his way and swatted at him. Of course, I didn't make it that far. I wasn't getting enough oxygen for that. The world narrowed, black spots danced in my eyes. I fell forward.

Zoro caught my arm. "Hey." he said. "Are you in on the plan?"

I frowned, then, after some consideration, I nodded.

Zoro grinned. "Good. Glad I've got your support, at least." He drew his white sword, and handed it to me.

Zoro. Has the stupidest ideas, but sometimes, they're just plain genius.

Nami stared at us in disbelief. "Y-you two aren't thinking of- You're not thinking of cutting off your own feet, are you?"

Zoro nodded grimly.

"How are you going to fight without your feet?!" Vivi yelped.

Zoro shrugged. "I'll find a way. Koe can heal our injuries when the fight's over."

"That wasn't my question." Vivi said faintly.

Zoro looked over at the giant. "Well, you in?"

The giant grinned. "Of course." he said. "I can't believe I actually was so close to giving up. Let's go."

Nami grabbed my elbow. "You're not actually thinking of going along with this, are you?"

I nodded. I closed my fingers around Zoro's sword. Even when I felt like I was a breath away from losing consciousness, I could feel the sword hum with an unseen power. It was almost as if the sword was just waiting for the battle to begin.

Zoro frowned and crouched, like a tiger just waiting to pounce. "On my mark..." he said. "Ready... GO!"

"WAIT!" Nami and Vivi shouted.

I shut my eyes and stabbed downward.

There was a flash of red, the ringing of steel, and blinding pain. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough. I felt my grip on Zoro's sword slipping. I realised the only reason I hadn't collapsed was because I had solidified up to my neck.

With an effort, I looked up at Zoro, and moved his sword towards him.

"It didn't work for you either, eh?" Zoro's voice sounded distant, even if he was standing right next to me.

I shook my head. I had only managed to cut one leg, and only to the bone. I could feel my blood oozing down my ankle.

"Well," Zoro's distant voice said. "You should probably find a pose you like."

"Will you shut up?!" Nami snapped. "It's not about the damn pose!"

I chuckled weakly. _C__an't forget the pose..._My head was buzzing, and my breath felt even more shallow than ever, but I placed my hands on my hips, like some tv character I'd seen when I was five years old.

My vision tunnelled, and I was feeling really faint.

That's when I saw a red, yellow, brown, and black blur dashed through my very narrow field of vision.

Then, as distant as an echo from a canyon, Luffy's voice shouted, "BAROQUE WORKS! I SWEAR I'M GONNA KICK YOUR ASSES!"

I smiled. Then everything went black.

* * *

Hot... It was really hot. Something red was flickering in front of me, beside me, all around me.

A cold feeling ran down my spine, and coloured flames flickered to life. Auras. One aura was coming up to me, fast. A yellow and black aura that didn't look quite human.

Caroo.

It was hard to think or act with limited oxygen to my brain, but I managed to grab onto Caroo's neck in time. With a lurch, I was yanked out of my melting wax prison. I managed to get my leg over Caroo's back, so I was riding him. "Thanks Caroo..." I managed.

"QUACK!" Caroo shouted. Then, we burst from the flames.

A million images flashed into my brain at once. Nami and Vivi knocking Miss Valentine to the ground. Zoro cutting Mr 5 down with flaming swords. Usopp getting up, coughing and rubbing his ribs. Luffy fighting Mr 3, who had created a suit of armor and gloves out of wax.

_Interesting colours..._ I thought. It was purple, red, and yellow. It didn't clash. It was a raging, all out war.

I put my foot on Caroo's back, and I jumped. Normally, heights would've terrified me. Now, the wind in my face was the best feeling in the world. I pulled back my fist, and punched. It hit Mr 3 square in the jaw. He yelped, and collapsed.

I landed on my feet. Pain shot up my right ankle. I gasped and collapsed.

Luffy knelt down beside me. "Hey, Koe." he said, placing his hand on my shoulder. "You alright?"

I took a few deep breaths. "Yeah," I managed. "I'm alright. Just a little dizzy."

Zoro, Nami, Vivi, and Usopp came up to us.

"That turned out well." Zoro said.

"Yeah..." Usopp said.

Zoro locked eyes with me and raised an eyebrow. "By the way, what was with that pose? Couldn't you have thought of something more creative?"

"Shut up, Moss-ball." I said in english.

"Gya ba ba ba ba!" The giant stepped up, and sat down next to us, shaking the ground. "That was a great battle!"

Usopp smiled. "Someday, I will become as great a warrior as you, Broggy-sama!"

Broggy grinned. "Good."

I smiled and took a look around. "Hey... Where's 3?"

Sure enough, Mr 3 had disappeared.

Luffy stood up. "I'll handle it." he said. He and Caroo dashed off.

"So," I said, turning to Nami. "What's the story here? Has the log pose set?"

A shadow crossed Nami's face.

Something told me good news wasn't what I was going to get.

* * *

"WHAT?!" I shouted. "It'll take a year for the log pose to reset?!"

Nami nodded, wordlessly.

I hung my head.

Suddenly, the ground rumbled. I thought it was the volcano erupting again.

Then, Broggy the giant jumped to his feet. "Dorry!"

I looked up. The second giant, the one who had been out on the ground, was standing. Granted, he looked rather confused, but he was alive.

The two giants smacked each other's shoulders, laughing and generally making the ground shudder.

Suddenly, a scream erupted from the forest. It sounded like a little girl's voice.

"What...?" I said.

Then, Luffy and Caroo appeared. "It's all taken care of." he said, sitting next to me.

I took a look around. Something still wasn't right... "Wait a second..." I said. "Where's the Ero-Cook?"

Of course! Sanji wasn't there! What the hell's up with him?! He couldn't have missed the fight because of the hunting contest, could he?

That's when I heard an annoying noise. "NAMI-SWAAAN! VIVI-CHWAAN! I'M HERE FOR YOU!"

Sanji burst out of the jungle, his cigarette spouting heart-shaped smoke. He stopped when he caught sight of the giant Dorry. "Whoa! Are you Mr 3?!"

I rolled my eyes. "Now you decide to show up." I growled.

Sanji looked hurt. "Hey now..." he said. "I don't know what happened here, but I think we'll be needing this." He held up something that looked like a compass in an hourglass case.

Everyone around me cheered. (Okay, except for Zoro) "The eternal pose to Alabasta! We finally have it!"

Vivi threw her arms around Sanji's neck. "Thank-you Sanji!" she said. "I'd almost lost hope!"

I saw Sanji's nostrils flare. "It was nothing... Really." he said.

I picked up the small compass. "So this is an eternal pose." I said, turning it so I could see every angle. "If we have this, we should go." I said.

Luffy nodded. He looked up at Dorry and Broggy. "Well, giants!" he said. "We've gotta go!"

Sanji looked at Zoro. "So, how do you think you did?"

Zoro smirked. "Oh, the contest?" he said. "I won. I bagged a huge rhino."

Sanji snorted. "A rhino? I hope it's edible."

I hid my smirk. "You guys go to the ship." I said. "I've got some things to do before I go back."

Everyone nodded and made their way towards the jungle.

I turned and walked to the edge of the clearing where my brachiosaurus was laying. There was a small lake right beside it. I called on the water, commanding it to burrow underneath the carcass. Then, with great effort, I willed the water to rise.

A brachiosaurus is not exactly a lightweight. A full grown adult can weigh more than five elephants.

I didn't realise how heavy an elephant actually was. It took all the concentration I could muster to get that brachiosaur even an inch off the ground. I started walking, carefully picking my way through the jungle with a huge dinosaur body floating ominously behind me. I have no idea how weird that would have looked to passersby. The brachiosaur was way bigger than me.

I was close to the ship, when I noticed something on the ground. I dropped my catch in surprise. "Nigel!"

My ammonite friend was inside a small pool of water, staring up at me with his big eyes. This must have been the place I had been knocked out.

I bent down and picked him up. "I'm glad you're okay, buddy!" I laughed.

Nigel wrapped his tentacles around my neck.

I positioned him so he was clinging to the back of my neck. "All right Nigel," I said. "Let's show the boys how measly their kills are."

* * *

I lost energy about ten feet from the jungle's edge. My catch hit the ground again, making it shake.

"I'm not too far from the ship," I said. "I'll just ask Zoro for help."

As I pushed a broad-leafed plant out of my way, I heard Zoro and Sanji arguing.

"Mine's bigger!"

"Are you blind?! Mine's bigger!"

Then Luffy spoke. "Who cares? They both look tasty to me."

I pushed through the foliage and said, "Excuse me?!" Okay, under normal circumstances, that would be extremely awkward. But, of course, (thank whatever higher power's out there) that wasn't the case.

Zoro was standing on top of a huge horned dinosaur: A triceratops.

Sanji was standing on a tyrannosaurus rex. Since it was the same size as Zoro's kill, I guessed it was a juvenile.

Both of them were only about half the size of my brachiosaur.

"Hey guys." I said, stepping into their field of vision.

Zoro and Sanji turned to me.

"Koe-chwaan!" Sanji said. "Mine's bigger! You know that, right?"

Zoro snorted. "My rhino is definitely bigger."

I grinned. "Well," I said. "I can tell you guys this. I won."

Both of them went slack-jawed. "Excuse me?" They said.

I shrugged. "I participated in the challenge too. Didn't you guys hear me?"

No response.

I turned away. "Hey, Zoro." I said. "I can't carry it by myself anymore. Gimme a hand, would you?"

Grumbling, Zoro jumped off his kill, and followed me into the woods, Sanji not far behind.

Before we could get to the trees, Zoro pointed to the back of my neck. "Don't tell me _that's_ your kill." he said.

I turned around. "What?"

Sanji nodded. "That squid thing."

I grinned. "Oh! No, he's not my kill. Say hello to Nigel. He's an ammonite. Our new nakama."

"What?" They both said.

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. Anyway, help me with this."

When they saw my brachiosaurus, both of them went so slack-jawed I thought they would dislocate and hit the ground.

"So..." I said sweetly. "Do you think mine's bigger?"

* * *

"Are you sure we can't pack more meat?" Luffy asked.

"Not if you don't want us to sink." I said, flipping through my book. I stopped at the end. Gold Roger's wanted poster was placed between the back cover and the last page, with Shank's note.

"Well..." Vivi said. "That was quite the adventure."

As we cleared the island, the we passed the giants, who were standing like guardian statues facing the sea.

"We thank you for all you have done." Broggy said.

"Allow us to repay you." Dorry said. "No matter what happens, sail straight ahead."

"I hope we meet again."

"Yes, I hope so too."

Nami stared out at the sea, then, her face paled. "Look out!"

In front of us, a huge something rose out of the sea. It was as big as an island, with bulging eyes, and huge teeth.

"It's a goldfish." I said.

Usopp, who was standing beside me, frowned. "I've heard about an island eating goldfish before..." he said.

"Hurry!" Nami shouted. "Turn the ship! Or we'll be eaten!"

"No..." Usopp said, an odd look on his face. His knees were knocking. "We're gonna sail straight ahead! Right, Luffy?"

Luffy grinned. "Of course." he said.

"Don't be insane!" Nami shouted. "This isn't Laboon! We really will die!"

"I know." Luffy said. "Here, have a rice cracker." He held her a snack.

"NO!" Nami shouted.

I chuckled. "Where did you get those, anyway?"

Nigel tightened his grip on my neck.

We sailed right into the mouth, and it closed on the ship.

"Sail straight ahead!" Luffy shouted.

"It's too late now!" Nami screamed.

Suddenly, there was a great roar. A huge hole was suddenly blasted through the goldfish. Merry flew out the hole. As we hit the sea, the giant's roar followed us until we were out of sight.

"GOOD FORTUNE ACCOMPANY YOU!"

**Please review!**


	40. Chapter 40

**Hello, all you Voice readers! **

**Man, I really wanted to write more this week, but things have been ****_so_**** hectic lately. **

**Koe: Yep. That's for sure. **

**FM13: So, I got a couple of reviews saying how much they like Nigel, the ammonite. So, we're going to bring him in! **

**Koe: (holds Nigel up) Hey, Nigel! Wave how'd you do!**

**Nigel: (moves his huge pupil) ...**

**FM13: So, thanks for all the reviews, everyone! **

**Koe: Frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece, or any of it's characters. Only her OCs.**

Chapter 40

"Let me see." I said.

Zoro frowned from where he was sitting, propped up against the siderail. He stood up and started walking away. "No." he said flatly.

I stalked up to him, grabbed his ear stood on my tiptoes and shouted, "SIT!"

I thought Zoro's eyes would bug out. He frowned at me. "Geez..." he muttered. "Shout a few decibels lower next time."

"Sit." I said again.

Zoro sat down, cross-legged.

I frowned. He was just dead-set on being difficult, wasn't he? "Stick out your feet." I said.

Nigel, who was still wrapped around my neck, rolled his huge eyes.

I rubbed his shell affectionately. "I know what you mean, Nigel." I said. "Such a wuss."

"Who are you calling a wuss?!" Zoro snapped.

"Stick your feet out." I said again.

Zoro grunted something that sounded less than complimentary, and stuck out his feet.

I stared at his black combat boots. "Why don't you take those off?" I said. "I'm not your nursemaid."

Zoro rolled his eyes. "No."

I felt a nerve in my temple twitch. I swatted his ankle with as much force as I could muster.

Zoro made a choking sound, then grabbed his ankles, moaning in pain.

"Don't mess with the doctor." I scolded him. "Now take off those boots!"

Zoro grumbled as he pulled off his boots. "You're bedside manner is the pits. I can't wait until we get a real ship's doctor."

"Believe me," I said dryly. "I could think of a thousand things I'd rather be doing right now than dealing with your attitude. Now, stick your feet out."

Zoro stuck his now bare feet out, and I wrinkled my nose. What did I expect? A basket of roses? lavender? Yeah right. "My first diagnosis is the growth of athlete's foot without immediate treatment."

Zoro rolled his eyes. "Very funny." he snapped. " Just heal my damn injuries."

I rolled my eyes and rolled up the cuff of Zoro's pantleg. The cuts were really bad, no mistake about that.

I grabbed the bowl of fresh water I'd picked up from the kitchen. I willed the water to wrap around Zoro's injury, and started to work.

For two hours we sat there, the sun beating down on the deck and anything that was crazy enough to be outside on a scorcher like that day. I swear, Zoro didn't look bothered in the slightest. Of course, then again, he's got a much deeper tan than I do. With me, there are only two shades. Really pale, and lobster. If I'm lucky I'll get a slight tan, but I have to burn first. I can't tell you how many times Luffy and Ace made fun of me for that. Jack-asses.

By the time I had finished Zoro's second ankle, the sun was dipping below the horizon and the rest of the crew was starting to return from the woodwork.

I sighed and leaned back on my hands. Man, healing is tiring work. Not only had I healed Zoro's ankles, I had healed my ankle, Usopp's burns, a cut on Luffy's tongue (don't ask), and one of Nami's bug bites that she got in the jungle (I forgot to mention, Nami's shirt had burned off so she had been walking around in just her... do I even need to say it, her bra. Much to a certain pervert's delight).

I shut my eyes and took a few deep breaths. I hadn't eaten since breakfast that morning, and, like I said before, healing with devil fruit powers is no picnic.

I opened my eyes when Zoro placed his hand on my shoulder. "You alright?" he asked.

I blinked. "Yeah, I'm good." I said. "Just a little light-headed is all."

That's when I noticed something gold dangling from Zoro's left ear. Okay, not something. Three somethings. I lifted my finger and tapped at the gold things, making them sway back and forth, tapping into each other like windchimes. "I didn't know you wore earrings..." I managed.

Zoro shut his eyes and took a deep breath, as if praying for patience. "You didn't know I wear earrings?" he said in disbelief.

I shook my head. "No. And, it looks kinda cute."

Zoro let out a low growl. "What the hell, Koe?" he said. "My earrings do not make me look 'cute'."

That's when Sanji whipped by. He stopped, handed me a transparent blue drink in a tall glass with an orange umbrella and a maraschino cherry. "You're right, Koe-chan." he said, smirking at Zoro. "He looks like the cute little weakling he is."

That's when Zoro snapped. "I AM SO GONNA KILL YOU, YOU SH*TTY DARTBEARD BROW!"

I rolled over laughing at Sanji's taunt and Zoro's attempt at english. "Hey, Zoro!" I called. "It's Dart_board _brow, not Dartbeard brow!"

Through the flurry of drinking glasses, feet and swords, Zoro shouted, "You're next, you know, Brat!"

* * *

"Mmm! This is delicious!" I said, draining the amazing drink Sanji had given me. "You've really outdone yourself this time!"

Sanji's smoke plume turned all heart-shaped. He ran towards me, his arms open. "I knew you loved me, Koe-chwaan!"

I sighed in exasperation and curled into a ball. Sanji tripped over me and crashed into the wall.

"I never said I loved you," I said, rolling my eyes. "I just said I like your drink."

I was sitting cross-legged on the deck with Luffy, Usopp, Zoro, Caroo, and Sanji, enjoying the drinks he'd brought out. A nearly full tray of drinks was set between us.

Caroo eyed the drinks wistfully.

I smiled, and fetched one for Nigel, who wrapped his tentacles around the straw curiously.

I laughed and stuck the straw in his tiny mouth, which is quite the impressive feat, finding his mouth through all those tentacles.

Then, I pushed one towards Caroo. "Want one?"

Caroo took the straw, and slurped the drink up.

We all laughed.

Sanji pushed another one towards him. Down that drink went, just as fast as the first one. Sanji kept giving Caroo more and more drinks until Caroo doubled over, shivering from beak to toe.

It was very funny.

That's when Vivi ran up to us, her blue hair in a complete mess, flying around in her face. "Everyone!" she shouted in distress. "This is really bad!"

I turned around so I was looking up at her. "What's the trouble, Vivi?"

"It's Nami!" Vivi shouted. "She's burning up with fever!"

* * *

"What do you think is wrong with her, Koe?" Vivi asked.

"I'm not sure..." I said. I had willed a small amount of water to cover Nami's forehead.

Vivi and I had managed to get Nami into the room that served as sickbay. It was the only room with a real bed in it.

Luffy looked over my shoulder. "Is she gonna be alright?" he asked.

"I hope so..." I said.

Luffy perched himself on the headboard of the bed and stared down at Nami. "Maybe if I sing a song, she'll wake up."

"No!" I snapped. Then I sighed and rubbed my temples. I was absolutely exhausted. "Look, Luffy," I said weakly. "Could you go outside? The quiet would be best for the sick and the healer right now."

Luffy pouted. But he seemed to understand what I meant. He was driving me insane. "Do ya want a glass of water or something?" he asked. "I could ask Sanji to bring you some meat."

"A glass of water's fine." I said. I shuddered at the thought of how much disturbance Sanji had caused when he saw Nami on the deck, breathing heavily. Imagine how he would react if he could be in sickbay... No, I'm not into self-induced trauma.

Vivi must have noticed the shadows under my eyes. She put her hand on my shoulder. "On another topic, are _you_ alright?"

I nodded half-heartedly. "I've been healing whoever all day. Nami I've checked on twice." I didn't say what was really worrying me. What if Nami had caught the bug I'd had?

"I just can't think what might have caused this..."

Suddenly, the ship lurched. Vivi and I yelped as we toppled from the chairs we were sitting on.

Nami tumbled out of the bed. She lurched up in alarm. "What happened?!" she groaned.

"I don't know!" I said. "Stay in bed, Nami!" I stood up shakily and ran to the door. I nearly fell over again as the ship gave another lurch. I threw open the door and dashed outside.

"What's going on?!" I shouted to Luffy, who was running around shouting "WOOHOOO!"

"Dunno!" Luffy shouted. "Turn to starboard! Koe, can you secure the sail?"

I felt my stomach knot into a sheepshank, but I nodded. I grabbed the rigging and hauled myself up.

"Hard to starboard!" Luffy shouted.

"NO!" someone shouted. "Hard to port! Now!"

Nami was leaning on the doorframe, Vivi trying to help her stay upright.

I managed to get the knots loose, and the Merry lurched to the left. As soon as we were almost a kilometer off our original course, I gasped. Five cyclones had formed in less than a minute, ripping through the water, right where we would have been. How could Nami have known that?

"Vivi!" I shouted over the roar of the wind. "Get Nami back inside! I'll be right down!"

* * *

I sat down on the chair next to Nami.

She was already asleep. Everyone was there. The room was tiny, so the temperature was rising by the minute.

"Nami-swaan!" Sanji shouted. "What's wrong with her now?"

Now, I'd had to put up with Sanji before, but I was exhausted, dizzy, getting over the adrenaline rush from climbing the mast, and worried sick about Nami. My patience was wearing very thin. I wanted to bash Sanji out the door, but I called on the shred of sanity I had left. "Look, Sanji," I said. "Make yourself useful and take lookout duty. The more noise you make, the harder it'll be for Nami to get the rest she needs."

Sanji looked like he was about to protest, but he nodded and stepped out the door.

"As for you others," I said. "If you're going to stay, keep quiet. I... I need to work at keeping her fever down."

I sighed, and sat down. I wished Nami wasn't the one that was sick. She was the only one besides me that knew anything about illnesses. I wished I could have asked Ace for help, or Sabo, or Keith. I knew that was impossible, though. Ace was far away, having his own adventures. Sabo had been dead for ten years. Keith... well, I didn't know. That's why, then, surrounded by my friends, I felt very alone.

I gulped down the lump of frustration that formed in my throat, and willed the water I was using to cool Nami's forehead.

I worked for almost an hour, then I fell asleep.

* * *

I woke to the sounds of Luffy and Usopp whooping outside. I groaned, spun on my chair, and opened the door. I gasped.

Snow! It was snowing! I hadn't seen snow in a long time. It hadn't snowed on mount Corvo the past few years.

Luffy was making a snowman. "Hey! Koe!" Luffy shouted. "Look! Look at my snowman!"

"Ha!" Usopp laughed. "That snowman sucks! Check out my masterpiece!"

Now, that sounds kinda rude of Usopp, but Luffy's snowman looked like it had been dropped on it's head. The head was too big for the body, and it must have been dropped once, because there was a huge dent in his head. One of his arms was way shorter than the other, the nose was pointing downward, and one of the eyes was lopsided. That was one sad little snow creature.

Usopp's, on the other hand, was a life-sized snow sculpture of a mermaid sitting on a sea rock.

"Hey!" Luffy protested. He picked up a snowball, and lobbed it at Usopp's head. It hit him square in the nose.

I'd been there, still, it was pretty funny.

I bent down and grabbed a huge handful of snow. "Snowball fight!" I shouted, taking a shot at Luffy. It couldn't have been more perfectly timed. Luffy had opened his gob to yell at Usopp, and it went right down his rubbery throat. He coughed and doubled over.

Usopp burst out laughing, but Luffy had recovered and gave him a taste of what he was laughing at.

I picked up a few more snowballs, and threw them at the two fools.

The next seconds were a blur of white and blue, in which I ducked under five shots and got hit by about twice as many.

"Will you idiots shut up?!"

I looked over my shoulder to the bow. Zoro. Of course. He must have slept there overnight. He looked like an evergreen tree in the middle of winter. There was snow covering his boots, his haramaki, and his scruffy, mossy hair.

"Good morning, party pooper." I said in english. Then I switched. "What's wrong?"

Zoro frowned. "I'm trying to sleep."

"You slept all last night." I said. "Why don't you get up and enjoy yourself?"

"I had to put up with your crap healing all yesterday afternoon, and then all this commotion with Nami getting sick, I need to get as much sleep as possible."

I frowned. I willed the snow to rise. I focused on a single point in front of me. The snow began to gather at that point, until it was the size of a large exercise ball. I flicked my wrist, and the snowball hit him square on the head. Then, I willed the snow to cover him. When I was done, a blinking snowman glared at me from where Zoro was sitting.

The snow trembled, then exploded off him. "What the hell do you think you're- What was that?!" he said.

That's when I noticed the rumble of something under the ocean. Then, whatever it was started to rise. Whatever it was, it was huge.

"Grab onto something!" I shouted. I grabbed onto the nearest thing I could grab. Usopp's nose.

He gave a strangled cry of protest as the ship lurched.

Zoro grabbed onto the rail.

Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, and I watched as the surface of the water exploded a few feet away.

Rising from the ocean was something mechanical. A huge metal monster, rising from the sea like a thing rising from a black lagoon in a horror movie.

"What the hell is that thing?!"

**So, that's chapter 40! The start, well maybe not the start yet, to the drum island arc. **

**Koe: Yay! Snow! Please review! XD**


	41. Chapter 41

**Hey, all you Voice readers!**

**Sorry for the wait! School is chaos right now, and I had this idea for another story that I might post. I still haven't decided whether I will or not, but at least I have the first few chapters written. I'll post a bit from one of the chapters at the end of this one as a preview. **

**Koe: That's you, all right. Always got five or six ideas on the go.**

**FM13: Yup! That's me! **

**Luffy: Anyway, frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of the characters! Only her OCs! **

Chapter 41

I stared in mixed horror as the thing, a metal thing, rose out of the water like a monster exploding form a swamp. It broke the water's surface with the force of a cannon blast, showering us with seawater.

I blinked the salty water out of my eyes and shook it out of my hair, which only meant Zoro got even wetter.

Luffy stepped forward. "It's a ship." he said in awe. "That is so COOL!"

It was a ship. All metal, it looked a bit like a cross between a ship and the submarine. It's gangplank was under a large rail with metal snowflakes that glinted like the teeth of a predator. A flag with a metal jawed jolly roger flapped in the chilly breeze.

I pulled Usopp off the deck, and propped him against the rail. I grabbed the bottle off my belt, and willed the water inside to cover his forehead. Suddenly, a wave of dizziness washed over me. I put out my hand to steady myself. I was still exhausted from healing Nami the day before.

_Okay... No healing until you get lots of rest. _

Then, there was a thump, and I looked up.

A short man landed on Merry's deck. He was short, and about the same shape as a squashed basketball. His lower jaw was made of metal. He was wrapped, head to toe, in heavy winter wear. Boots, parka, toque, the works. His eyes were pinched to the bridge of his nose. His teeth were huge.

"Who are you?" Luffy asked, stepping up to him.

The man stepped up to Luffy as well, glaring at him. "You!" he said. "I am Wapol. Do you have a log pose, or an eternal pose to Drum Kingdom?"

Luffy shook his head. "Nope! Say, what kind of boat is that?"

Wapol turned away from him, and walked over to where Usopp and I were standing. Then, he did something I could hardly believe. He looked at our ship rails quizzically, and opened his gob until it was as big as me! Then, he bit into Merry's rail, shearing off the wood and metal, crunching it like it was a lettuce sandwich.

I stood up like a rocket. "Hey!" I snapped. "What the hell do you think you're doing to Merry?!" I pulled back my hand and smacked him across the face.

Wapol caught my hand in a grip much too hard for a shorty like him. "You little bitch." he growled. "A woman should never strike her superiors!"

"Superiors?!" I said incredulously. "Who the hell do you think you are?!"

Wapol tensed, preparing to keep me from pulling back.

I grinned. Instead of pulling back, I surged forward and kneed him in his crotch, lifting him off the ground.

Wapol cried out in pain.

"My turn!" Luffy shouted. He pulled back his fist. "Gum-Gum... PISTOL!" He hit Wapol in the nose, sending him flying into the water.

I stood there, seething. How dare that conceited, wood munching creep?

A shout came from the metal ship. "Oh no! Lord Wapol has been knocked into the ocean! He's got the power of a devil fruit! Save him!"

The boat took off.

"That." I said, staring at it's retreating form. "Was. Weird." Then, I fell to one knee, holding my other one. "Damn..." I grumbled. "Is _every_ part of him made of metal?"

Zoro stepped up to me. "You okay Koe?" he asked.

I blinked yellow spots out of my eyes. "Yeah." I said. "I'll live. That weirdo is tougher than I figured. Think I busted my knee cap."

Zoro frowned. "Couldn't you just heal yourself?" he asked.

I shook my head. "No. I'd pass out if I tried to heal anything as minor as a paper cut."

Luffy stepped up. "You're overexerting yourself." he said. "You should get some rest."

I blinked. "Maybe I should." It was a mark of how exhausted I was. I didn't argue with my brother or the marimo... I must have been losing my mind.

That's when the kitchen door burst open, and a black and yellow blur landed in front of me. Sanji bowed. "Never fear, Koe-chan." he said. "Your knight is here."

I rolled my eyes. "Your watch is a little slow, Sanjilot." I said, smirking. "The fight's been over for five minutes. Even Marimo was more useful than you."

Sanji slumped, waterfall tears streaming down his cheeks. "Oh! Cold rejection!"

"What the hell was that supposed to mean?!" Zoro snapped.

I grinned and laughed.

* * *

It was the middle of the night. Everyone was sleeping in sickbay again. This time, it was Usopp's turn to stand night watch, which meant Sanji was around, disturbing me while I was trying to keep Nami's fever down. Until about eleven thirty. This was just weird, I mean, normally whenever I treated fevers, they went down in a day or so. This twenty four seven oven battle was draining both me and more importantly, Nami. I hadn't drained myself healing someone this much since I was about ten years old.

* * *

(flashback starts)

It was just another normal day on Mount Corvo, which, of course, meant things were utter chaos.

Luffy, Ace, and I were hunting crocodiles for lunch. It was really cold, but it was always a better idea to hunt crocs when it was cooler, so their movements were sluggish. We had a game plan. Ace had drawn it out for us, stopping Luffy from just charging them like usual, and it was pretty easy for even me to understand. Luffy would cause a distraction from the front while Luffy and I attacked from above with our devil fruit powers. We had just initiated phase I, where Ace jumped out in front of the crocodile.

The big, ugly beast lunged at Ace, who dodged easily.

I nodded to Luffy, and we charged. I jumped on the left side of the crocodile's head, while Luffy went for the right. I took my pole and jabbed it in the eye. That's when things went downhill.

Luffy staggered, then collapsed.

"Luffy!" I shouted. I ran towards him, but the croc was disoriented from my hit to it's eye. It reared, sending us flying. We landed in the swamp with a splash!

I scrambled to Luffy's side. "Luffy! Daijobu desu ka?!" I hoped that was 'are you alright".

Luffy was breathing heavily, his face bright red. I put my hand on his forehead. It was really hot. "Ace!" I shouted. "Ace! Help!"

We needed help for more than that, though. The extremely miffed crocodile must have clued in that one of us had stabbed him in the peeper. He turned on us, fire in it's good eye, pus and blood in it's other. Yuck.

"YAMETE!" Ace jumped on the crocodile's head, and smashed it's bad eye again with his pole. He drove it down to the hilt.

The croc let out a shriek that nearly deafened me, then collapsed.

Ace jumped over the carcass and rushed to my side. "Luffy! Koe! What's going on?" he said. At least, that's what I thought he said.

"There's something wrong with Luffy!" I said.

Ace stared at me in confusion.

I blushed when I realized I had said it in english. I tried again.

Apparently it worked, because Ace kneeled down beside Luffy and put his hand on his forehead. A look of worry crossed his face. "C'mon." he said. He picked Luffy up and slung him over his back.

We didn't finish hunting that day. We ran to Dadan's hut.

Dadan opened her door and demanded what we were doing back so early.

We pushed past her and ran inside.

Ace lay Luffy down while I ran and got some water from the well.

I ran into the room where Ace and Luffy were. I was so shaky I almost spilled all the water. I knelt down next to Luffy, and, the water bucket on my lap, I willed some of the cold water to encase my hand, and I put my hand on his forehead.

Luffy's expression changed from pained, to relief. He opened his eyes, and said, "Koe... Meshi..."

I looked down at him in disbelief. "Food?" I repeated. I turned to Ace, who had been sitting on Luffy's other side and said, "Meshi?"

Ace chuckled.

"He'll be fine." I said in english.

* * *

It took me a few days to heal Luffy's fever. I didn't leave Luffy's side once, even though Ace tried to get me to take a break.

Just when I was about to collapse, Luffy opened his eyes again. "Hey! Koe!" he said. "You alright? You look like you're about to collapse. By the way, do you have any food?"

I blinked a few times. Then, I passed out.

* * *

I woke up with someone slapping my face. It was Luffy. He still looked a little sick, but not feverish anymore. He looked really desperate. "Koe!" he hissed worriedly. "Ji-chan's coming!"

I sat up. "Garp?" I asked.

Luffy nodded. "We're-" he said something I didn't really understand. I got the feeling it was something a little rude.

That's when the wall burst open.

"WHERE'S MY GRANDSON?"

I yelped and ducked as Garp flew right over me. He landed with a thud right in front of Luffy. "How are you, Luffy? Training hard to become a Navy officer?" Or, at least I think that's what he said.

Luffy stuck his tongue out at Garp. "Blech! I'm gonna become the pirate king!"

_Uh-oh..._ I thought.

Garp's expression turned from friendly to beyond angry. He shouted something I didn't understand. Then he shouted, "FIST OF LOVE!"

I ducked as Luffy flew over my head, right through the hole Garp had made.

Garp kneeled in front of me, and said something I didn't understand.

I didn't really understand what he was saying, but I did have a policy. When I didn't understand, I just nodded and smiled.

So that's what I did.

Obviously, it was the wrong answer. Garp's face contorted in anger, and I received the 'Fist Of Love' treatment as well.

I landed right on top of Luffy. We both grunted in pain. "Sorry." I said.

Luffy shrugged. Then, his eyes widened.

Garp was coming up faster than the semi-truck that had hit me years before.

Luffy and I looked at each other, and shouted, "RUN!"

(flashback ends)

* * *

"Koe!"

I opened my eyes. Luffy was tapping my shoulder. "Hey, Koe! There's an island!"

I blinked. "Oh, right!" I said. "Let's go."

The minute I stepped outside, I shivered. The island we were at was even colder than the rest of the ocean.

We were sailing through a narrow channel, with snow-covered hills on either side, reminding me of snow-covered battlements of one of those medieval castles that Keith used to tell me about. Tall and sinister looking. Like they hid something. Something lethal.

I stared around me. "Something's not right..." I said.

"Why?" Usopp asked me, coming up beside me.

Zoro joined us. "There isn't anyone out here."

"I don't think so..." I said. "Don't you find it odd that there isn't even a peep coming from the dense forest?" I said. It was almost like something had ravaged the landscape not too long ago.

I shut my eyes, and tried to tap into that aura vision. It took a little longer than normal, but finally, I felt the familiar snap, like a nerve in my brain had disconnected, then connected with another. Everything was black when I opened my eyes. Then, fiery auras flickered to life around me. Yellow... _Usopp,_ I thought. Dark green... _Zoro._ Light blue... _Vivi._ Bright red... L_uffy. _Black-y-yellow... S_anji._

Then, I saw something that made my heart stand still. Auras flickered from behind one of the hills. At least thirty of them.

"Luffy," I started.

Then, someone shouted. "Freeze, pirates!"

I blinked, and my aura vision fizzled out. Everything went back to normal, shapes and colours.

And I didn't like what I saw. Thirty men were standing on the hill on the starboard side. They were in winter clothes, and they were pointing huge rifles at us.

"Well..." I said. "I guess we know whether we're welcome here or not."

**So, that's chapter 41! Please review!**

**And, as promised, here's the fragment of a chapter preview. **

_We have read your request for medical internship. After reading and carefully considering your resume, we have decided your abilities are adequate. Meet us today, at eleven o'clock at the docks. _

Three sentences. Those three badly written sentences were the start of my life's upside down turning.

That was how I ended up running down the street, my hair combed and tied up in a ponytail, a white button-up shirt and black slacks replacing my casual clothes. I was still wearing my combat boots, though. I lived in the lawless zone of the Sabaody archipelago, and it was always a good idea to wear heavy footwear, just in case you stepped on a piece of glass or needed to scrape the skin off someone's shin. Not that I ever had to do that. I didn't know the first thing about fighting.

I had my casual clothes in my backpack, which was slung over my shoulder, bumping against my back as I tore through the crowds of the amusement park, scattering groups of annoyed tourists.

I made it to the dock at the stroke of eleven. I doubled over, coughing and clutching at the stitch in my chest. I had made it. Just in time.

"You alright?" someone asked.

I looked up. Standing above me were two men wearing orange jumpsuits. One of them was slightly taller than the other one, with brown hair and a navy blue hat. The other one didn't have a strand of hair showing. His hat said PENGUIN.

"Did you guys send me that letter?" I asked.

The guy with the penguin hat nodded. "This is Shatchi. I'm Penguin. Our boss sent you the letter." He turned around and motioned for me to follow. "C'mon. Let's go."

Wordlessly, I followed them. I couldn't help but feel that I'd made a bit of a mistake. There was something odd about those two. Something I should have been able to remember, but I couldn't.

I followed them to a yellow submarine. "You're kidding..." I said. "You're seafarers?"

Shachi nodded.

I could see the sense of this. Injuries weren't uncommon with seafarers.

When we boarded the submarine, I couldn't believe my eyes. The whole place was a medical facility! I had to admit, for a private physician, this guy was really good at keeping his place clean. Believe me, I know what a clean facility is supposed to look like. This place met and exceeded every requirement. I couldn't see a spot of dirt anywhere. There was some pretty high-end stuff there, too. The ECG on the wall looked like the newest model. I thought I'd seen it in a magazine somewhere.

There were boxes and boxes of IV catheters, bandages, needles, IV fluid bags, and syringes all over the place.

There was a tall, stainless steel operating table in the centre of the room. The thing that I found odd was, there were no operating tools that I could see. This I found both strange and oddly disturbing.

I was examining the life support system when I heard someone say, "So this is her?"

I looked up and nearly had a heart attack. Standing a few feet away was a tall man in a yellow shirt. He was about 6'3'', with black hair, sideburns, and a small black beard. There was a really creepy smiling symbol on his shirt, and he carried a sword as big as he was on his back. He was staring at me, smirking. He stepped towards me.

My knees turned to jelly, and I collapsed. I knew I'd seen this guy before.

The man grabbed my hand and pulled me up to my feet. "So you're the trainee." he said in an almost mockingly calm tone. "I'm Trafalgar Law."

* * *

It took me a little while to find my voice after Trafalgar Law hauled me to my feet. I said something really intelligent, like, "You're kidding." That was really stupid. I knew he wasn't kidding. How on earth could someone lie with such a straight face?

I ran through names in my mind. Trafalgar Law... Trafalgar Law... Oh no.

"So- So let me get this straight." I said.

Trafalgar Law raised an eyebrow at me. "Yes?" he said calmly.

"You're a pirate with a two hundred million berry bounty?"

He nodded.

"You're called the surgeon of death?"

Again, he nodded.

_Well, _I thought. _That explains the lack of operating tools._ "What on earth do you want with me?" I asked.

He sat down, and fixed me with an amused stare. "Well now." he said. "You read my letter. You're my trainee."

I blinked. It was almost as if a gear in my brain had been misplaced, and the rest of the gears had to run my brain without it. "So I'm supposed to become a _pirate_? In case you hadn't noticed, that's not what I applied for."

Trafalgar just smiled again. He crossed his fingers, as if he had all the time in the world. "Let me lay it out for you." he said. "You need medical training. You join the crew. I get a new asset, you get the training you need. Everyone wins."

It took me a few seconds to realise Trafalgar had stopped. It was such a brief explanation that I had not clued in he had finished. "That's your reasoning?" I said incredulously.

Trafalgar nodded.

I frowned. I wasn't going to become a pirate, of course. I would fight if I had to. Of course, there was one problem. Like I said before, I know diddly squat about fighting. That would be seriously last resort. I decided to just go for the simple solution. "No."

Trafalgar snorted. Not a snort of anger, but a snort of laughter. "You don't have a choice." he said, smirking. "We just cast off."

I smacked my forehead. "Why did I have a feeling you would say that...?" I groaned. This was so not going well.

**So, that's a part of the first chapter of the story I'm thinking of posting. Tell me what you think, if you like. **


	42. Chapter 42

**Hello, all you Voice readers! So sorry for the delay, but I'll try to update every weekend. **

**Koe: Good thing you're not so bad at school... Either that, or you're just really lucky with multiple choice questions. **

**FM13: Let's leave it at, I'm really good. **

**(Loud crash as Luffy and Usopp break through the door) **

**Both: Frosty!**

**FM13: What?**

**Usopp: You haven't given us another riddle for a long time!**

**Luffy: Tell us one! I wanna figure it out!**

**FM13: (sighs) Okay. Hmmm... Let's see... Give me food and I'll live, give me water, I die a painful death. What am I? **

**Koe: Are you serious? Is this foreshadowing of some kind?**

**FM13: (Whistles) N-no.**

**Koe: You are a terrible liar. **

**Luffy: (in the corner, muttering to Usopp) What dies when it's put in water?**

**Usopp: Devil fruit users.**

**Luffy: But we still drink... Right?**

**Koe: Okay, anyway, frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of it's characters. Only her OCs. **

**Thanks to everyone who's sent me a review up to this point! 115! Yay!**

Chapter 42

You know, I always said there's nothing like a good shock to wake you up in the morning. Although, normally what I mean is, coffee so strong you need help prying your hands off your mug.

Staring down the barrels of thirty or so heavy duty rifles is _not_ my idea of a pleasant wake-up call.

Luffy made a move towards them, but I put my hand on his shoulder. "Take it easy, bro." I said. "We are trying to get these people to help us, remember."

I took a step forward. "May we speak to whoever's in charge, please?" I called.

My question was met with absolute silence.

Then, some of the men moved, making way for someone else. From the crowd emerged a tall man in a green winter coat. He was built like an ox. Tall and beefy. He had a huge blade that was shaped like a paddle slung over his back. His eyes were small and black, and his hair was cropped short. He emanated a kind of confidence and tranquility that the others didn't have.

I could tell this guy was a natural leader.

"Yes?" he said in a booming voice.

Luffy stepped up. "Hey!" he said. "We have a sick crew member! Can you help us?"

Someone in the crowd shouted, "HA! A likely excuse, pirate. But it won't work on us! Why don't you just pack up your lies and go to hell!"

"What?!" I snapped.

Luffy looked about as infuriated as I was. "Why I oughta-"

The men flinched. Thirty guns ignited at once. Bullets peppered the air around us.

"Hit the deck!" I shouted. I grabbed Zoro and Usopp by the ears, and pulled them down. Although, I miscalculated. Merry lurched, and we ended up in a dog pile, Usopp on top, me on the very bottom, getting the wind crushed out of me.

"Okay, guys! Get off!" I snapped.

That's when I heard Luffy shout "VIVI!"

Vivi was on the deck, clutching her arm.

I pushed Zoro off me and ran to her side. "Hang on. Let me see."

Luffy strode forward again. "Damn you!" he seethed.

"Stop, Luffy!"

I looked at Vivi, who had pushed me aside, and stood up. She stepped up, and to my astonishment, bowed to the people who had just shot her. "I'm terribly sorry." she said. "Please, help us." She paused. "You're a failure as a captain, Luffy." she said. "Letting your emotions run off with you like that. Your crew should always be your first priority."

I didn't know what to think. I had no sympathy for a bunch of guys who had just tried to off us.

Luffy thought for a second, then, he bowed next to Vivi. "I'm sorry." he said. "Please help us."

The big man's gaze softened at this. He nodded. "Fine." he said. "Bring your sick crewman to the village. I'll lead you there."

* * *

"There!" Luffy said. "Ready to go!"

I drew Nami's hood over her face and adjusted her on Luffy's back. "You guys be careful, okay?" I said. "I'll be along in a few minutes. I've just got some things to finish here."

Luffy nodded. "Yosh! I'll be waiting!" We stood there in silence for a second, then Luffy sighed.

"Hey," I said. "What's the matter?"

Luffy's expression looked pained. "Am I really a failure as a captain?" he asked.

I sighed and snatched his hat off his head. "Look, Luffy." I said. "Vivi was just as pent up with emotion as you were when she said that, I'm sure. You've more than proved yourself a good captain." I placed his hat back on his head. "Now get going! The green giant's waiting."

Luffy chuckled and adjusted his hat. As he passed me, he muttered in a very accented English, "Thank-you, Koe."

I smiled. "Do itashimashite... Aniki."

* * *

I walked to my room and threw the door open. "Nigel!" I called.

Nigel was floating around in the small tank that Usopp had made for him. He flicked his eye, the only way I could tell he understood me, and bobbed closer to me.

I broke through the ice that had formed on the top of the tank, and grabbed his shell. "C'mon, Nigel!" I said. "We're going on a little hike."

I stepped out the door, with Nigel wrapped around my neck like a fleshy hoodie. I placed one hand on Nigel's shell. "You ready?" I asked.

Nigel flipped a tentacle at me, which I took as a yes.

I zipped up my hoodie as far as it would go. "Alrighty then," I said. "I'm off!"

I turned to Zoro, who was leaning against the rail, his hands behind his head, his legs splayed, and a snot bubble inflating and deflating from his nose.

I poked the snot bubble and it broke with a small snap.

Zoro shot up so fast I almost didn't have time to dodge him. "What!?" he snapped when he realized it was just me.

"You think you can watch Merry and Caroo while I'm gone?" I asked.

Zoro nodded. "The duck and I can watch the ship." He closed his eyes and started snoring.

I sweat dropped. "So, you're going to watch Merry through your eyelids. The power of a swordsman never seasons to amaze me."

I turned to Caroo, who was huddled up next to Zoro, trying to get warm. I patted his head. "Hey, Caroo." I said.

He looked up at me groggily and quacked half-heartedly.

"Watch the moss ball and see that he keeps out of trouble, okay?"

Caroo nodded, and his head fell under his wing.

I put my hand on the rail and vaulted over the side. The cold air pierced through my hoodie and bit into my skin as I fell. Fortunately for me, the drop was only about seven feet. I landed with a soft thud in the snow. I stood up and took a deep breath. "We'll, Nigel, let's go to big horn!"

* * *

Big Horn was a small village in the centre of the island. There were about twenty small huts, half that many small houses. All of them looked like good shelters from the cold winds and the glowering shadow of the oddly cylindrical mountains that loomed above it. There was also a hint of unease in the air, as if this village had been attacked and they were expecting another.

I stopped at the small house the Green Giant had told me about, and knocked on the door.

The door swung open and the Green Giant stared down at me. "Ah, the pirate girl." He said, furrowing his eyebrows. "My name is Dalton. Come in."

The house was really warm. It was small, with a few people, and a roaring fire in the fireplace.

Vivi and Usopp sat at a small table, sipping tea.

Dalton motioned to a place at the table next to Usopp. I sat down, and he sat next to me. "I was just explaining to your friends," Dalton said gruffly. "How our king, Wapol, fled the island in terror before the pirates invaded, taking most of the doctors with him. All but one, anyway."

I nearly snapped the handle of the teacup I'd been given. "Wapol?" I said. "You mean the tubby Ossan that tried to eat our ship? the guy I kneed in the balls?"

Dalton raised an eyebrow at me. "You kneed Wapol in the groin?" He said incredulously. "I'm impressed, young lady."

I grinned.

That's when I nearly choked. Nigel had gripped my neck so hard I thought my head was going to pop off. "Nigel!" I snapped. "Behave!" What was wrong with him?

"Hey," I said. "Where are Luffy, Nami, and the Ero-cook?"

Usopp pointed out the window towards the mountains. "They went to take Nami to doctor Kureha, who lives up there in a castle."

I looked up at the mountain. Something was off about the mountainside.

I jumped when someone banged on the door.

"Dalton! Dalton!" someone shouted. "Wapol! It's Wapol! He's back!"

Dalton gasped. He ran to the hearth, grabbed his huge blade, and ran out the door.

Vivi jumped up after him. "Wait!" she shouted. "Dalton!"

Usopp jumped up after her, leaving Nigel and me alone at the table. "Well," I said, getting up. "I guess we'd better go out too."

* * *

The minute I got outside, I knew something was wrong. There was a shock to the air that I didn't like.

Vivi and Usopp were long gone already, and there was no sign of Dalton either.

I sighed. "Well, now what?" I said. I looked up at Nigel. "You wanna visit the island's only doctor, Nigel?" I had no desire to see that damn ship eater again.

Nigel blinked his huge eyes.

Suddenly, I heard something. Like a distant roar. It sounded like a boy shouting something.

I sighed when I recognised the voice. "Luffy..." I groaned.

That's when it hit me. Why would Luffy be screaming like that? I looked up and my heart nearly stopped.

Have you ever seen a video transponder snail recording of a tsunami coming at you? Or ever tried to imagine what a herd of charging elephants looks like? Well, I can assure you, an avalanche is pretty high up there with those two scary experiences.

This white wall of death was racing towards Big Horn at alarming speed.

"Crap." I said. "If that continues at this speed, we'll all be crushed. No doubt."

So, I did one of the stupidest things I'd ever attempted in my life. I hauled myself onto one of the small huts facing the outskirts.

"If I can control water, I can at least slow this avalanche!"

I looked at Nigel, who was giving me a very odd look. It looked like he was trying to say, _Are you out of your mind?!_

"I'm not sure, Nigel." I said, as I raised my arms. "I kinda stopped caring about common sense after spending ten years with Luffy and Ace."

I took a deep breath, and concentrated on the avalanche barrelling towards the village. All those tons of snow and ice.

_Stop._

The rumbling kept coming faster and faster.

_Slow down._

All the colour seemed to drain from my surroundings, turning about a thousand different shades of grey and black. Everything went deadly quiet. I mentally pushed with everything I had. There was an intense tugging sensation in my gut.

_Slow down, dammit!_

There was a rush of wind in my ears. Something slammed into me, knocking all the breath out of my lungs.

Everything went white, then red, then black.

* * *

"Hey! Miss! Pirate girl, are you dead?"

I groaned as I opened my eyes. "Not yet..." I managed.

A villager in a winter coat was standing over me, a concerned look on his face.

"How do you feel?" he asked.

I rubbed my aching head. "Wait! Where's Nigel?!"

The villager held up my shelled friend. He looked absolutely fine.

"You mean this thing?" he asked.

I nodded.

"But how do you feel?"

I blinked the yellow spots out of my eyes. "Let's just say, I know how a smoothie ingredient feels now."

"A what?"

"Never mind. Other world stuff."

I stood up and brushed the snow off my sweater, which was kinda useless, but what the hell.

I took Nigel and placed him on my shoulders. I turned to the villager. "Do you know what happened?"

His eyes shone. "It was a miracle! At the last minute the avalanche slowed down! It would have leveled the whole village, otherwise!"

I smiled. _You're welcome._ I thought.

"Hey, do you know how I can get to the mountains from here?" I asked.

He nodded. "Yeah, you just follow that path. Why?"

I turned and faced the snowy peaks. "My friends went up there to see the doctor. I'm gonna find them."

"Wait, what?! You'll be killed!" the guy shouted. "There are lapins up there!"

I frowned. Where I come from, 'lapin' is 'rabbit' in another language that I really couldn't remember the name of. What's so scary about a rabbit? Then again, this is the grand line.

I grinned. "Don't worry! I'm strong!"

With that, I dashed through the snow towards the drum mountains.

* * *

It didn't take me long to learn what was so dangerous about a rabbit.

I made it through the forest and up to the mountain when I ran into something that looked like an abominable snowmonster with rabbit ears.

These things were snow white, with glowing red eyes. They were larger than the tigers on mount Corvo!

And, of course, they had to have a good sense of smell.

A large one took notice of me. He let out a low growl.

I stopped. If there was one thing I knew about big animals, they don't like to be startled. The consequences could be fatal. I tried to appear as calm as possible, which was kinda hard, since I was freezing my butt off, and took a step towards him.

That didn't please the rabbit He lunged at me.

I had just enough time to step backwards before he slashed.

Pain shot through my arm like a bolt of electricity. The snow became tinged with red, and I dropped like a stone. I fell flat on my back, which, of course, knocked the wind out of me.

I managed to haul myself into a dazed sitting position.

The huge lapin let out a horrible roar. It's breath was so rank it parted my hair.

"Yuck!" I managed. That's when I looked down at my arm. I nearly lost my consciousness and my lunch. Not necessarily in that order. The lapin's huge claws had cut three deep gashes in my bicep, revealing gaping muscle tissue and, at the centre of each cut, was a gleam of red on white.

I blinked hard to keep myself from fainting right there. "Oh man..." I said in a daze.

Then, a shadow loomed over me. There was Poppa rabbit, ready to turn me into sliced pirate bread.

suddenly, a white ball of fluff jumped in front of me and growled at Poppa rabbit.

To my astonishment, Poppa rabbit stopped and stared at the fluff ball. I blinked and examined it more closely. It had large red eyes, and rabbit ears.

"No way..." I muttered. "A baby lapin?"

The little tyke turned to me and sniffed my leg. His eyes widened, and he yapped to Poppa rabbit.

Poppa rabbit eyed me suspiciously for a second, then he stood down.

I looked at the baby. "I owe you one, Fuzzy." I said.

Fuzzy jumped up on my lap and climbed up to my chest. he nuzzled there, like a cat.

Nigel didn't look too thrilled with having a baby rabbit taking all my attention. He smacked the little guy with one of his tentacles repeatedly.

"Nigel!" I snapped. "Knock it off!"

Nigel did knock it off, but he did so reluctantly.

the baby lapin gave Nigel what I was sure was a smirk, then, just like a cat, he decided to knead.

Now, I don't have to tell those of you who are cat owners, that kneeding is when a cat repeatedly sinks and retracts it's claws from something, and generally it isn't a very pleasant experience for whoever is getting that treatment on their lap. Let's face it. Jeans are useless against cat claws. Well, that's what the little fluff ball was doing to me, except it was on my chest. I ca assure you, no matter how much a cat knees you, it's nothing compared to having a lapin do it.

Of course, Fuzzy sank his claws into my chest.

I gasped in pain and shoved him off me. i had to fend off many more attempts from Fuzzy to climb onto me.

"I'm flattered, Fuzzy, but I have to get up the mountain before dark, which isn't that far from now."

I'm not too sure what happened next. Poppa rabbit, who'd been standing at the sidelines watching me trying to fend off Fuzzy, stumped over to me, picked me up, and slung me over his shoulder. I tried to struggle, but honestly, what on earth can a scrawny fifteen-year-old do against a full-grown snow monster?

Poppa rabbit kept walking. It must have been at least an hour since he had looked up at me, and I really wanted to know where the hell we were going.

Meanwhile, Fuzzy and Nigel were busy glaring at each other from their spots on my back. Every now and then I gasped in pain and tried to shake the fuzzy white pest off me, but it didn't work quite as we'll as I'd like.

Finally, we stopped.

I looked up, and gasped. The drum mountain loomed over us like a predator, it's icicles glittering like fangs in the twilight.

I had never seen anything so majestic, yet so terrifying.

I yelped as Poppa rabbit dumped me in the snow.

I stood up, brushing the powder off my already soaked through sweater. "Thanks." I said to him. "I owe you one."

Poppa nodded, whileFuzzy peeked out from behind Poppa's shoulder.

I turned and faced the rough, craggy mountainside. "Well, Nigel," I said. "You ready for a bit of rock climbing?"

* * *

I stepped up to the mountain face. I hadn't realized how steep the mountain really was, until I hauled myself up.

the rock was hard and bone chilling to the touch. I shivered. I realized for the first time, whatever enemy I'd faced before, the near-fatal encounter with the lapins, that wasn't the most dangerous thing. My worst enemy was the cold, and the exposure of my wounded arm, which was still bleeding freely.

I reached up and hauled myself up another level.

My arm screamed in protest, but I shut the pain out of my mind. "There is no pain..." I grunted as I grabbed the next handhold. "There is no pain!"

I stopped after what felt like an eternity. I clutched the crags that were the only thing between me, and a seven hundred meter drop to my death.

The sun was dipping below the horizon. The only bit of light left was a sliver of sunlight that soon disappeared. The wind was sharp as a blade. The cold bit into my skin and dried the blood to my arm, making it crusty and hard to move. I had lost feeling in it long before.

On my back, Nigel was shivering just as badly as I was. His coral blue tentacles were covered in frost.

"Hang on, Nigel." I said, looking up. "We're halfway there..."

Of course, that's when the blizzard hit. It was just a few softly falling flakes at first, but then the wind picked up even more. Now the snow was so dense I couldn't see where the handholds were.

I grabbed what felt like a promising ledge, and lifted my foot on another.

There was a sudden crack! I felt a rush of wind and pain, then I was dangling over an abyss of snow by one hand. Of course it had to be my right hand.

I groaned as I fought to stay conscious. Might as well bite the bullet. I slung my left hand onto the mountainside, and grabbed an unseen handhold. Cautiously, I put my foot on the mountainside. Yes! I was back on track!

* * *

How long had it been? Half an hour? An hour? Five hours? I wasn't sure. I was so spent, so cold and so dazed with pain I couldn't even register where I was when I got to the top. I staggered a few steps forward, my sandalled feet crunching through the fresh powder. I thought I saw a door, before I collapsed.

The last thing I remembered after that was staring at two small hooves right in front of my nose.

A reindeer? I thought.

Then everything went black.

**Chopper comes in next chapter! I can't wait to write that one!**

**Koe: Who?**

**FM13: Oh, nothing. **

**Luffy: Frosty... Gimme a hint...**

**FM13: How many more hints do you need, Luffy?**

**Luffy: (gives the puppy dog eyes) One more... Please?**

**Koe: (sighs) Please review! XD**

**Oh, by the way, if you have a favourite riddle that you'd like me to post at the start of a chapter, PM me the riddle and the answer! - FM13**


	43. Chapter 43

**Hey everyone! This chapter was a short one, so I decided to post it right away! I'll go to the routine of posting once a week, though. **

**Keith: You're awfully energetic for this early in the morning. **

**FM13: Not you too... Isn't anyone an early riser? **

**Koby: I am!**

**FM13: Thank-you. (gasps) Oh my! Helmeppo's got his tongue stuck to the freezer door!**

**Keith: We'll help him! C'mon Koby!**

**FM13: ... (looks around to make sure they're gone) Okay, now that they're gone, I can do the shout out. I decided to do it every time I get twenty reviews. Here we go!**

* * *

**4fireking: So glad you like the story! What gave made me want to write this... That's a tough question. I liked the idea of someone from our world falling into the world of One Piece. I had wanted to write a fanfiction about siblings different experiences. I also wanted to write a story about a girl with the ability to control water, but would still sink like a hammer if she fell into the ocean. I also wanted to do a self-insert... right, that didn't work out so well. I kinda based Koe's personality on my own, except for the claustrophobia, and a few other things. **

**As for Keith... Well, I wanted Koe's older brother to be a slightly quicker learner than her, a lot more serious, and fiercely loyal to his friends. **

**Originally, I wasn't going to have more than one chapter in Keith's point of view before they met. I'm glad I changed that, though. **

**Molly Grace 16: You're probably right about the scent. I won't tell too much, but I can tell you, it'll be funny, hopefully. **

**CallmeEevee : Gosh! That's so nice! **

**Luvrainluv: It took me a while to figure out how Koe would get past those lapins. I know I wouldn't be able to do what Koe does!**

**Shininheart of ThunderClan: You're totally right! I can't believe I didn't think of that.**

Chapter 43

Keith's POV

It was a beautiful day out on the open sea. Not a cloud in the sky, so far out, the gulls are becoming scarse. Now and then, a dolphin pod would ride our wake, giving everyone something to look at.

The perfect weather for a training session.

koby jumped back, landing in a crouch across the deck from me.

Helmeppo drew his kukri.

I took a deep breath. 'Dont use your devil fruit power, remember.' I thought. I didn't want to spiritually incinerate my two best friends before they became true marines. I don't think they or vice admiral Garp would thank me for that.

Vice admiral Garp sat on the sidelines, munching away at a package of rice crackers. "koby!" he ordered. "You first!"

Koby crouched even lower, then shouted, "Soru!" He vanished in a flash of pink and white.

I sighed. "Still too slow." I ducked under his punch, and brought a kick up into his ribcage.

Koby collapsed, groaning.

I lowered my guard and knelt at his side. "You alright?" I asked.

Garp snorted. "You're going easy on him, Keith. Koby's got the strength to groan. He'll be fine! Helmeppo! Now!"

Helmeppo charged me. Unlike Koby, Helmeppo didn't really have any qualms about giving me a bruise or two. He slashed with his kukri.

Without thinking, I turned into spirit flame and rematerialised behind him, landing a blow to his crotted artery.

Helmeppo dropped like a stone.

I sighed, and sat down. This was no challenge at all, but I had agreed to help with Koby and Helmeppo's training to keep my mind off the next to impossible task ahead of me. We had passed at least half a dozen islands already, and I had found no leads as to Koe's location. I mean, the world is a big place, but it was still a real shot to the heart when I spent hours asking about her and come up with nothing.

Garp stood up and laughed at his students amiably. "You two have improved!" he said, pulling Koby off the deck. "Still got your asses handed to you, though. Gahahahaha!"

"Yes sir..." Koby groaned.

"Alright!" Garp said. "You've earned yourselves a break, sailors! Let's have some rice crackers!"

Garp half-carried, half-dragged Koby and Helmeppo below deck.

I smiled as they disappeared from view. They were the weirdest people I knew, well, besides admirals Aokiji and Kizaru, but I'd never say that out loud. They were the one comfort I had, though. I'd hate to think how many times I might have given up over the past week or so, if Koby and helmeppo weren't always messing up, and Garp constantly goofing off.

I thought back to when Koe and I were kids. Big mistake. Darkness took hold, and I slipped into the past.

* * *

(Flashback starts)

**CRASH!**

My eyes snapped open. I sat up so fast, I whacked my elbow against my headboard.

"Ouch!" I yelped.

There was a huge ruckus coming from downstairs.

I sighed. This was nothing new. Sometimes Mom would go on one of her rampages, destroying anything she could lift, and knocking over everything that wasn't bolted to the floor.

I slung my legs over the side of my bed, then jumped to the floor. I stuffed my feet into my too-small slippers, and carefully opened my door.

I stepped across the hallway to the stairs. I tiptoed down the stairs, avoiding the third step from the bottom. That stair creaked.

I made my way into the kitchen. Koe was already there.

Even for a four-year-old, Koe was small. She looked at me with fear and confusion in her auburn eyes. "Keith... What's wrong with Mommy?" she mouthed.

I put my finger to my lips, signalling her to keep quiet, and pressed myself against the wall beside her.

I stole a glance through the door. Mom had stopped her rampage, and was at the table, her face buried in her arms. Her shoulders were shaking.

Around her, the coffee table had been overturned, one of it's legs broken off. The window behind the sink was smashed. There were shattered glasses and broken porcelain all over the floor. In short, the kitchen was a mess.

Koe stared at me fearfully. "Why does she do that?" she mouthed.

I shook my head. "I don't know."

Suddenly, I felt a prickle at the back of my neck.

Mom had lifted her head, and I swear I could feel her angry gaze on me.

Koe and I flinched as Mom screamed at us. "GO BACK TO BED!"

We jumped a foot in the air, then ran up the stairs as fast as our little feet could carry us, the stairs creaking like crazy.

(flashback ends)

* * *

I stared at the cirrus clouds in the distance. _I wonder, Koe..._ I thought. _What do you look like? What's your favourite food? Colour? Music? Who do you consider family now? How many friends do you have? Do you know how to sail? What are you doing right now? Are you still getting in as much trouble as when we were little? The info Koby gave me is a little vague, even though he tried his best. _

_... Where in this wide world are you...? _

**Sorry if this chapter is a little short. I promise the next one will be a lot longer, or my average of two thousand words anyway. **

**Please review! XD**


	44. Chapter 44

**Hello everyone! I decided to update slightly early, since I won't have internet access over most of the weekend. **

**Luffy: (stumbles through the door) Hey! Frosty!**

**FM13: What is it, Luffy? **

**Usopp: (stops beside Luffy, clutching the stitch in his chest) The riddle! We have the answer! **

**Koe: Wow. And it only took you about a week. **

**Usopp: Shut up. **

**Luffy: It's fire! You know, since fire gets fuel, but dies if it has water!**

**Koe: This ****_is _****foreshadowing of some kind. What are you thinking?**

**FM13: (smiles innocently) You'll see. **

**Koe: (groans) Anywho, frostmoon13 doesn't own One Piece or any of the characters. Only her OCs. **

**Luffy: (pokes Koe) Do you have any prosciutto and ham?**

**Koe: What brought ****_that _****up? And I've tried to explain it before! Prosciutto ****_is _****ham!**

**FM13: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I love reading them. **

Chapter 44

It was really dark. I didn't really remember much about the first time I came to. Everything was so fuzzy I could barely make anything out at all.

all I remember was a very blurry brown thing with a blue point in the centre staring down at me, before something pricked my skin.

My eyelids felt heavy. Must have been a sedative. Almost immediately, I fell asleep.

* * *

(flashback starts)

I stepped down the stairs in the dead of night. Or what should have been the dead of night. I had woken up to the most horrible crashing sound. I couldn't stay in bed while this was going on.

Keith had told me about Mom's late night rampages before, but Iwas only three and I wanted to see it for myself.

there was a crash and a tinkling of glass and I stopped, trying to steady my breathing. I knew enough about my mom to know it wouldn't be good if I got caught.

I stepped on the third stair from the bottom.

CREAAK!

I nearly jumped out of my skin. I had forgotten about the stupid stair!

I jumped back and tried to slow my heart, which was beating against my chest so hard I thought it would explode. I stayed there for ten long, deep breaths. Nothing. I let out a long, slow exhalation.

Mom obviously hadn't heard me.

I stepped over the stair, and continued the rest of the way down. When I made it to the kitchen doorway, I heard Mom muttering something through her arms. "Why? Why would you just leave me like that? I'm stuck here while you galavant around, having all the adventures we could have hoped for! It's been three years! How long do you expect me to wait!? I-I hate you!"

I decided to take a risk. I peeked out from behind the doorframe.

Everything around Mom was a complete mess. She had even managed to crack the sink in two this time, I addition to the shattered glass on the floor.

Mom was at the table, her head in her arms. In front of her was a picture frame.

My heart leapt when I realized who must have been in that photograph.

Quietly, I took a step forward, avoiding the broken glass, and made my careful way towards the table. I stood on my tiptoes to be able to see the man in the photo.

It was hard to tell with the glare, but I could make out Mom, and a guy of about her age. I couldn't really see his face all too well, but I could see a huge toothy grin.

"Daddy." I whispered.

Big mistake.

Mom's head shot up like a rocket. "You!" she snarled. "Go back to bed!"

I stood there, rooted to the spot by fear. "Who-" I didn't even finish my sentence. Mom grabbed me by the hair and started dragging me to the staircase.

"you damn little brat!" she shouted, fury in every syllable. "Do you have any idea what you've done!?"

That was when Keith came down the stairs. His eyes widened when he saw Mom with a large tuft of my hair clenched tightly in her fist. "Mom!" He exclaimed.

Mom's grip slackened for just a second.

I used that opportunity to pull away from her, and run to the kitchen. I wanted to grab the photo. To see what my dad actually looked like. I had imagined him many times, but this was real.

Unfortunately, Mom beat me to it. She snatched the picture, and stalked into the living room. She stopped at the fireplace and threw it into the roaring fire.

I ran to have a look, but the photo had caught fire. All I could see of the man beside Mom was that large, toothy grin behind the flickering tongues of flame.

The only thing I might've had of my father was gone.

(flashback ends)

* * *

I groaned and opened my eyes. Man, I hate having dreams like that. It would be too much to ask to ask for one good, dreamless rest, wouldn't it?

I sat up with a bit of an effort. I gasped when I looked down at myself. I was pretty much all bandages from my neck down!

My bicep was bandaged, but that, at least, was to be expected.

What I didn't expect was to see that my shoulder had also been bandaged. I tried to sit up, but it was really hard to move. My chest had been bandaged all the way from my collarbone to my waist.

I frowned and drew my knees to my chest. I felt my ankle. It was bandaged too!

All the injuries I'd received, setting aside my head injuries, had been tended to.

"You're not one to take it easy after a fight, are you, girl?" Someone just out of my sight cackled.

I turned to see a very old woman. Man, was she ever weird! She looked like someone's grandmother gone wild. She was wearing a purple shirt that showed her midriff and pierced naval. Her purple pants were form fitting. She had purple tinted sunglasses on her head.

She pulled up a stool and sat down next to the bed. She looked like she was about to say something. Instead, she yanked the covers right off me and pulled up my shirt up to just below my collarbone. She poked at my left side.

I don't know how, my injuries had healed, but I winced so hard, I lashed out and punched the wall.

The old woman cackled. "Broken ribs don't heal so easily, you know." She prodded my ribs again. "In fact, none of your injuries have healed completely. It's an incredibly poor healing job. Would barely qualify as first aid."

I felt a twinge of annoyance. Sure, I wasn't a doctor, but I did my best.

The old lady smirked. "Don't you have a ship's doctor?"

"I'm the impromptu ship's doctor." I said. "I have no medical experience, but I can use my devil fruit to keep wounds from bleeding out. That's my job until we can find a real doctor."

The old lady's eyes flashed. "And yet, you scaled the drum mountain in a wet lightweight hoodie and sandals. You're not the brightest, are you?"

"Don't mock me." I said. "I was looking for my friends. They should be here..."

The old lady shoved me down onto my pillow. Damn, she's strong for an oldie. "It's alright, child." she said. "You're with the brain dead little brat in the red vest and the straw hat."

I tried to sit up agin, only to be pushed back down. "Yeah, he's my big brother. How-"

"He's alright." She interrupted. "So is your friend with the fever."

I sighed with relief. "Thank-you so much... Tried to heal her for the past couple of days, but-"

"And you did a very good job, considering your lack of medical skills and impatience. Your heart is in the right place." She finished.

I blushed right up to the roots of my hair. I knew I wasn't any good at healing people, but I had hoped that I could do something for Nami. To have, well, I thought she was a doctor, pay me a compliment like that was overwhelming.

I made another move to sit up, but the doctor lady stopped me. "You need to get some rest. Kak kak kak. I'll call the strawhat kid in here to see you. Oh, and I do believe this is yours." She tossed me something that flashed blue and orange in the light.

I reached out and caught it. "Nigel!" I exclaimed.

He looked absolutely fine! Nigel's eye twitched and he wrapped his tentacles around my arms.

"You're alright, buddy!"

The doctor lady smiled. "He was nearly dead when you came. Not as bad as you, but in pretty rough shape. Chopper healed him."

I clutched Nigel to my chest. "Well, tell Chopper, whoever he is, that I said thank-you."

The doctor nodded. "I'll do that. By the way, my name is Kureha. And don't even think about getting out of bed. It will be a lot less painful that way."

I blinked. "Okay then..." I said as Kureha shut the door. "So that's what bedside manner is. I'll remember that next time I heal Zoro."

I lay back on my pillow, thinking. It hurt to do pretty much anything else.

I was just about to shut my eyes, when I heard a rumble coming towards me. I raised an eyebrow. That sounded like-

**BANG!**

A number of things happened at once.

A brown fuzzy thing with reindeer antlers a blue nose and a pink hat ran by, screaming at the top of his shrill little voice.

Luffy was chasing after it, shouting, "Wait Food!"

Sanji was running behind Luffy. "Wait, Luffy, let me cook him first! Reindeer should be stewed slowly!"

Finally, doctor Kureha darted past - damn, she's fast for an oldie - tossing kitchen knives and old swords at Luffy and Sanji. "You little brats leave him alone!"

All that breezed by in about ten seconds. Then, it was deadly quiet again.

I blinked. "What just happened...?" I said to no one in particular.

* * *

I blinked hard and rubbed the crusty stuff out of my eyes. I must have fallen asleep.

I sat up and prodded my ribs. I couldn't feel anything.

I was about to swing my legs over the side of the bed when someone said in a really high voice, "Stay in bed."

I blinked and looked around. I couldn't see anyone.

"I'm down here, Baka!"

I looked down. Sure enough, there was the little reindeer thing that had blown through my room earlier. I honestly felt a little embarrassed that I hadn't looked down. I'm the shortest on the crew by a good three inches, so I know what it's like to be the little one.

"So," I said, pulling my legs back under the covers. "You survived the little fiasco with my brother, eh?"

The reindeer jumped back. "That guy's your brother?!" he yelped.

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm not gonna eat you, though. I prefer my venison beef jerky style."

The reindeer jumped about five feet in the air. "What?!" he yelped.

I laughed at his reaction. "I'm just joking. C'mere and sit down."

the reindeer did as I asked, but he looked at me warily. "You shouldn't even be moving around, you know." He said, staring intently at me. "Umm..." He fidgeted on the stool. "I spoke with that other lady. The one with the fever."

I launched into a sitting position. "How is she?" I demanded.

"She's fine!" He yelped. He blushed a bit - can reindeer even blush? I dunno -, his eyes roving somewhere around my chest area, as if he was trying to see if my bandages were too tight.

I frowned. "Say, are you a devil fruit eater?" I snapped. "Because you're acting a lot like a teenaged boy, the way you're staring at me."

He jumped back again. "I-I didn't mean to stare, I was just wondering if you got those injuries in a fight with other pirates! I wanted to know if that lady wasn't lying, if you are pirates. My name is Chopper, by the way-"

"Hold it!" I cut him off. "Slow down. You're Chopper?"

He nodded quickly. "I'm a human reindeer."

I raised an eyebrow. "So you're devil fruit makes you a reindeer?"

Chopper frowned. "No, I ate the human-human fruit."

"So you're a human reindeer."

"Exactly." Chopper said. "So, I'm not really into human girls."

I grinned. "Well then, that's alright!" I said. Honestly, I was relieved. At least he wasn't... You know. "Tell me a bit about yourself- Oh, right! You wanted to know if we were real pirates. Well, we are! I'm the second mate and log keeper of the crew."

Chopper's eyes lit up. "Oh!" he said. "Can I see your logbook?"

I smiled. "Sure, why not? You got my bag handy?"

Chopper handed me my brown canvas bag that I carried around with me everywhere.

I was about to pull my book back when Chopper started to back away.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"I-" Chopper looked embarrassed. "You like me?"

I frowned. "Of course I do! You're a really cool reindeer. Besides, you healed Nigel for me, so we're both in your debt." I held Nigel up to help prove my point.

Chopper looked like he was about to cry. "I... I have a blue nose..." He muttered. "I thought you would hate me for it..."

I nearly choked on air. "Why on earth would I hate you for that?!" I said.

"Well, I-"

I leaned back against the headboard of the bed. "Listen, Chopper, I'll tell you a story."

Chopper looked like he was going to bolt for a second, but I grabbed him and pulled him onto the mattress so he was sitting at my feet.

"Where I was born, there was this story adults used to tell kids about a reindeer."

"Where are you from?" Chopper asked.

"Well, I lived in the east blue with Luffy since I was five, but before that... My hometown was a place called Saskatoon."

Chopper frowned. "Where's that?"

I smiled. "Not in this world." It was shocking... That word seemed alien on my lips now. "Anyways, back to it." I ignored Chopper's look of terror at my other world comment. "Anyway, there was this reindeer who lived in the North Pole. he was excluded by the other reindeer because he had a glowing red nose, like a flashlight."

"Red?" Chopper asked in amazement.

"Yep. And all the reindeer made fun of him for it. But one night, it was so foggy, his owner couldn't see to steer his sleigh. So this little reindeer got to pull Santa Claus' sleigh every year after that. All the other reindeer finally saw him for who he was. And he lived happily ever after."

Chopper frowned. "Who's Santa Claus?" he asked.

I shrugged. "If memory serves me correctly, he's this fat guy who wears a red winter suit with a white pompom on his hat that goes around once a year delivering presents to the children of the world, or something like that. He breaks in through the chimneys of the houses, and get this, he never gets stuck! With his waistline! But the kids leave him cookies, a kind of peace offering I guess, and he has a bunch of short elves working for him in the toy shop year-round and when he gets back after one night of work he sleeps until that time next year. Oh, and he has a really fuzzy white beard."

"Chopper laughed. "Do you believe in him?" He asked.

I shook my head. "No, not really. I mean, I've seen weirder stuff than a guy being rewarded for break-and-enter with cookies in this world, but he never acknowledged me or my brother, Keith. He never came to our house."

Chopper frowned. "Oh, I see..." He got up and handed me a small pill. "That's a painkiller for you." He said. "I... I need to get back to work. Thanks for talking with me... Ummm..."

"Koe." I said. "My name's Koe. And I should be thanking you. I've never met a talking reindeer before."

Chopper smiled, and was about to leave, when he pricked an ear up. He stiffened.

"Chopper?" I asked. "What's-"

"Shhh!" Chopper sniffed. "Oh no. I've got to warn Doctorine!" He ran through the doorway and out of sight.

I stood up and walked, quite painfully, over to the window.

There were three people standing I the frozen courtyard. One of the men was pretty tall and wore something like a Hester's cap.

The second guy was dressed all in orange, which was murder on my eyes with the glare of the sun on snow. His hair was a huge black Afro.

'A black Marimo' I thought.

The third, my breath caught in my throat. It was a short, tubby man with a huge jaw and a loud voice. It was Wapol.

**Luffy: Hey, Koe, can you tell me that story again?**

**Koe: What? The one about the reindeer? Not right now. **

**Luffy: (Pouts) Awww...**

**Koe: How about the story of the ant and the grasshopper?**

**Luffy: Ooh! What happens?**

**Koe: Well, there was this grasshopper and this ant who lived in a field...**

**FM13: Well, please review! XD**


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